


Her Mother's Eyes

by PokehTurtle



Category: RWBY
Genre: Angst, Bumblebee - Freeform, Canon and non canon vol 4, F/F, F/M, Flashbacks, Fluff, PTSD, Raven is a bad mom, Slow Burn, badmom.exe, trying to recover from having your world shattered is rough, very slow burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-03
Updated: 2017-06-10
Packaged: 2018-09-28 00:26:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 23
Words: 69,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10058942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PokehTurtle/pseuds/PokehTurtle
Summary: Yang Xiao Long was shattered by the Fall of Beacon. Her partner abandoned her and her friends were killed. Her team was destroyed. Her arm and life were taken from her. She planned to spend the rest of her days on Patch, trying to recover even a small portion of what she once was. One sleepless night, Yang encounters someone she never expected to ever meet: Raven Branwen, her mother.





	1. Chapter 1

It’d been three months. Three months of relearning the most mundane of tasks. It was a struggle for so many weeks to put her shirt on in the morning. Learning how to cook with one hand. Three months trying to choke down food everyday. It all tasted like clay and made her want to vomit. Three months of ignoring her father’s pleas, of saying she wasn’t ready to talk about it. 

And she probably never would be. 

All she did these days was watch TV, do chores, and take Zwei out on his daily walks. The latter generally ended with the plucky pooch staring her down with his beady little eyes until she at least looked at the mechanical arm she had just received. Oftentimes she’d touch the box, grazing her fingers over the thick cardboard, but she’d never open it. She hadn’t seen the interior since the day her father first brought it to her. She didn’t want to.

When the mechanical limb first arrived, Yang didn’t know what to feel. Her mind went blank when the altesian metal was placed before her, iron and steel elegantly curved and forged into an advanced piece of battle technology. She could see her eyes reflected on the surface; dull, colorless, bags hanging underneath from fitful nights of sleep. And the fear. That had been the worst part. Seeing it reflected on the arm hurt. So she put it away. 

It sat in her room just like she did. 

Most of the time Yang was fine. Just fine. She didn’t think about what happened at beacon if she could help it. 

Of course, it inevitably would happen. A word from the TV, an offhanded comment from Taiyang, and she was suddenly thrust back into that moment where she could feel the heat from the flames of the burning cafeteria, where she had spent so many hours laughing and joking around with her sister and her friends, where she fought Nora with full sized turkeys on her fists, where she spent late nights with Blake studying for their exams, where she heard Blake scream as a demon stabbed her in the gut and how there were tears falling out of her eyes in a torrent as she roared, where it eerily hadn’t hurt when she first felt the blade make contact with her arm and how she blacked out and woke up in a room that was nothing but white. 

And she would cry. Silently, so that her dad wouldn’t hear. She would cry until her body was no longer capable of producing tears and the only thing she could taste was salt. Zwei tried to help. He would come into her room and lick her face and the weird gross texture of his tongue would help bring her back to reality. Yang didn’t smile a lot these days, but it was hard to cry with her favorite dog staying by her side. 

She felt useless. Before she could have taken on anything; a thousand of the white fang, an army of Grimm, any punk ass bad guy. Yang would have done it with a grin on her face. Fighting beside her teammates had been the best feeling in the world. There was nothing like the rush of adrenaline through her veins, the fire bursting off her skin, each blow making her stronger than ever. 

That wasn’t who she was now. The thought of going out to break up a nightclub or beat down a robot didn’t spark up any desire in her anymore. Her friends weren’t there to play board games with or spar with. No more going out onto the town and dancing or going to an amusement park. Weiss wasn’t around to scold her for leaving her bra on the floor. To go shopping with for cute clothes with. She couldn’t tease the ice princess if she wasn’t around and she missed the goofy faces she would make when she was flustered. 

Ruby was gone too. Her little sister whom she basically raised. Sometimes she would have gone off on tirades about weapons and mechanics driving the rest of team RWBY crazy. Sometimes she’d talk in her sleep and everyone in the room could hear her from their bunks. It was always something silly and they’d tease her about it in the morning , laughing it out. Yang would have given anything to have her sister back. To have a movie night or go camping. To pass funny notes to each other in class. To cook Summer’s old cookie recipe. To have her sister back.

And Blake ran. 

She didn’t want to think about Blake; her faunus partner that had so slowly opened up to their team. Blake had always loved reading and it was hard not to giggle whenever they caught her reading Ninjas of Love, the embarrassed look on her face almost always priceless. 

Yang had always loved watching her bow, when it would wiggle and twitch because of the par of cat ears hidden underneath. She loved her ears. They were cute and fluffy, always moving, telling of Blake’s emotions. 

Blake had loved fighting for justice and against oppression and cruelty with a passion that could move mountains. Yang had loved helping her, going out and fighting baddies and sometimes, every once in a while, reminding her friend to take care of herself. 

Yang remembered the dance and how happy she was that Blake came. She thought she looked so beautiful in that black dress and the smile on her face melted Yang’s heart into a puddle. Blake’s was the only head she’d wanted to turn that night. She remembered hoping that Blake wouldn’t notice her quickened pulse when they headed out onto the dance floor, her mind racing about what she should say, or the jealousy she felt when she let her dance with Sun. It wasn’t her place to say anything of these things. It wasn’t her place to have fallen for her partner. 

Because Blake hadn’t loved her back. Yang was starting to wonder if she had ever cared at all. After everything that had happened, how could she just run without a word to anyone? Without a word to Yang? The pain of losing her arm, recovering from the surgery in the hospital, was nothing compared to the pain of being abandoned all over again. She hated Blake.

Yang sat in her room with Zwei, getting ready for bed. She’d gotten the art of changing into her pajamas down to a science, it having been one of the most humiliating things about losing her arm at first. If she’d gone back in time and told herself she’d be so thrilled about changing herself, little Yang definitely would have laughed at her. 

Landing on her bed with a ‘thump’, Yang looked out the window that for a few weeks had been her only view of the outside world. She’d long since memorized every pattern and nick in the wood. Every time she looked out of it she thought about them. Every time.

Letting out a sigh, she rested her head on her pillow and went to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhh hello! This is my first fanficiton so thank you for taking the plunge with me! Like everyone else I'm feeling the sting of the hiatus so here's a slight reworking of volume 4: basically if after Raven's conversation with Qrow she actually decided to go see Yang instead of peacing out. Blake's volume 4 story will be featured as well.
> 
> I'd love to hear any thoughts and critique in the comments! I'm far, far from perfect so any thoughts and ideas are very welcome! So please let me know :)  
> I'm over on tumblr @PokehTurtle as well.


	2. Chapter 2

They sat at the dinner table, reliving a fond memory that involved Ruby making a comically tall stack of objects to reach the cookie jar when she was younger. Yang had, naturally, been a willing accomplice and the incident ended with Taiyang and Summer scooping up cookie crumbs and little glass piece throughout the kitchen for hours. 

“Ruby had chocolate chips in her nose!” Yang snorted, slapping her hand down on the table. 

“Yeah and you know who had to get them out?” Taiyang chuckled. “I never want to be that close to anyone’s nose again! You two probably shaved ten years off my life that day!” 

The two laughed and smiled, Zwei attempting to eat Taiyang’s dumplings. It felt good to relive the happy memories, bittersweet though they may have been. Always willing to crack a joke, Taiyang had been a pillar of stability for her the past few months. She couldn’t thank him enough for his dumb stories and wisecracks.

Yang and her father eventually fell silent, the laughter petering out as the blond started to toss her food back and forth across her plate. She didn’t really feel like eating. Taiyang grimaced, looking down at the table before addressing his daughter. 

“Yang… it’s been three months. I know I haven’t pressed you about it.” Apprehension was clear in his voice. “But don’t you think it’s time we talked about it? What happened at beacon?”

Yang was silent for what felt like hours. She didn’t want to talk about it. Ever. 

“Uncle Qrow already told you what happened.” She said curtly. Her grip around her fork tightened. “I don’t have anything to add.”

“You know that’s not what I mean.” Her father’s tone was gentle. He always was about this sort of thing, always trying to be a good father. “Yang, if you don’t talk about it you won’t be able to heal.”

He sighed, noting the bright shade of white her knuckles had become. “I know how hard it is. When Summer never came back I… wasn’t the best dad. I kept it all bottled in and I hurt you girls. I don’t want that to happen to you. I just want to help.” 

Yang stood up and slid her chair back into place. She took her plate over to the sink and started to head up the stairs, looking back at her dad forlornly. 

“Dinner was good dad. Thanks.”

Taiyang stood up, his voice filled with concern. “Yang please…”

“Night dad.” 

Zwei whimpered and scuttled up the stairs after Yang. Taiyang wanted to go after her, to finally get her to talk to him but he knew it was a pointless effort. She needed more time. That, or something that he couldn’t provide her with. 

Qrow had told him what happened so he knew just how horrible The Fall had been. Her partner abandoned her and her friends were slaughtered. To top it off Qrow had convinced Ruby to leave and neither of them knew when she was coming back. Yang’s entire life had fallen apart in the span of one evening.

He feared that he would never get his little sunny dragon back.

\---------

Yang had gone outside to sit on the porch with Zwei, sleep having eluded her, as it often did. The air had started to warm since Ruby left with Jaune, Ren, and Nora, winter retreating and spring arriving. Trees had started to get their leaves back and the shattered moon reflected light onto the growing branches. Cold wind bit against her skin, but she didn’t mind it too much. She’d always produced more heat than others. 

“I’m glad you’re still around.” She scratched Zwei behind the ears, the little corgi looking up at her expectantly. Yang smiled and looked back out at the clearing, trying to focus on the sound of the leaves rustling. Her father didn’t deserve the cold shoulder she was giving him. She knew very well that he was only trying to help, and that ultimately, he was right. 

“Everytime I he asks I just… I just can’t do it. That makes me pretty awful huh?” Zwei growled at her slightly as though he disagreed with her. The family pet always seemed to be a lot wiser than he had any right to be and often ‘voiced’ his opinion. She remembered when she and Ruby had finally convinced Taiyang to get them a dog. Ruby had been so excited when they finally brought him home. She’d spent the better part of a month trying to teach him to hold a knife in his mouth and fight, the whole family ending up with its fair share of nicks and dings. 

“Most people would call me crazy for talking to a dog I think.” Yang chuckled. Her eyes fell to the path she’d watch Ruby and the others go down, heading off to Mistral or gods knew where. Ruby still wore Summer’s cloak, and Yang followed the bright shade of the red as long as she could with her eyes. She missed her little sister. She wanted her to come back home. She wanted something stupid and fun like the cookie incident to happen again. But it wouldn’t. It might not ever happen again. 

“I miss her Zwei.” She couldn’t stop herself from starting to cry, tears pooling at the base of her eyes. “I want to go after her. I’m just a burden like this though. I can’t help anyone.”

Zwei whimpered. 

“I thought I was invincible.” Yang lifted what was left of her right arm up.

“Sucks that I’m not left handed huh? Have you seen my handwriting recently?” She tried to crack a joke, laughing weakly to herself. Sometimes she could still feel her arm there and would even occasionally try to grab something with it. Sometimes she would just feel pain and it felt like she was back in the hospital, kicking and screaming, trying to escape and go after her team as they shoved needles into her and tried to fix what was left of her arm.

The night was still save for the chilling breeze. The trees rustled gently in the wind, complimented by the sounds of owls and other small creatures in the forest. Yang heard an odd shuffling nearby and ignored it; it was likely a squirrel or something. Zwei however, seemed oddly irritated by the disturbance. A growl rumbled in his throat and he jumped off the porch. He glanced back at Yang before taking off into the woods. 

“Where are you going?” Yang stood up. Zwei never acted like that. For lack of a better term, he was a good boy. Behavior like this was not normal for him. 

“Zwei come back!” Her voice was urgent but quiet. “Zwei!”

The last thing she wanted to do was wake Taiyang. He had enough on his plate already. She could go get Zwei back by herself. Probably.

Yang began making her way down the road before she froze. What if it was a Grimm? There usually weren’t any on Patch and her dad was more than strong enough to deal with them, even though Yang no longer could. She gingerly touch her arm and let out a breath. 

It was safe. She was safe. Zwei was just acting out.

Yang swallowed her apprehension and followed him, his little footprints carving a path through the woods, knocking back the dead leaves left behind by winter. She followed him up a hill, all the way to the top where the trees gave way to a clearing. There was a dead, mighty tree at the summit. Yang remembered climbing it with Ruby back when they were younger, whether they were playing tag or pretending to be huntresses, scrambling up to the top despite the concern from their mother. Everything had always looked so small from the very top of the tree. She couldn’t imagine getting to the top ever again without both of her arms. 

Yang was exhausted when she reached the top of the hill, something that would never have bothered her before, sweat falling from her brow as she looked at Zwei, his ears pointed and teeth bared. He growled, like an attack dog, in a way she’d only see him growl at Grimm. There was a figure standing there in the shadows, a pointed silhouette that stood starkly against the old tree. 

It was her mom. The mask, the black and red, the sword. It was Raven Branwen. 

She had only seen her once in person, all those months ago on Torchwick’s train, where she’d saved her and left without a word, but she would never forget that figure. She’d spent years burning the picture of team STRQ into her mind. 

Yang stood dumbfounded in the cold, waiting for anyone other than herself to make the first move. Half of her thought she was dreaming or hallucinating. Her heart pounded so hard in her chest she thought it would break through her skin. She almost wished it would. Being dead sounded far better than her current situation. 

Zwei continued growling, the only noise breaking the silence between the two. 

“Leave.” Yang finally hissed. It was all she could say. It was though her mother had violated the safety of the island, tainted it somehow. And she still hadn’t taken off her damn mask. It made her look like a monster. 

“Leave!” Yang shouted, hardly caring anymore if her dad heard her all the way back at the house. It was the loudest she’d raised her voice in months and it made her throat ache. She wanted her dad. She wanted her team. She wanted nothing more than for Raven to be gone. There was fear in her voice and it made her legs tremble and her heart fall apart. A few months ago she wouldn’t have been acting like a scared little kid. A few months ago she could fight back. 

“Make me.” She heard the voice under the mask. It was the first time she’d heard her mother’s voice. It wasn’t what she’d expected. Raven almost sounded like an actual person underneath the Grimm mask instead of a child abandoning monster. A rude, snarky, awful person, but a person nonetheless. She threw Yang’s prosthetic arm on the ground, the metal landing with a low thud on the forest floor. How had she gotten that? When had she been in their home? Violating their safety? Fear made Yang’s veins fill with ice. 

The masked woman drew her sword, a blade bright red and far longer than it had any right to be. The tip found its way to Yang’s neck, resting slightly above her collarbone and digging into her skin with every breath. She didn’t dare move.

Zwei hid behind Yang, barking, but clearly afraid of the woman before them. 

“Pathetic. You can’t even stop me.” Raven spoke in a slow, low tone, her blade digging deeper into Yang’s neck, drawing a trickle of blood that moved almost glacially down her daughter’s neck. Those exact words. The same words she’d spoken to her partner almost a year ago. 

“You’re weak. And the weak die. That’s how it’s always been, and how it always will be.” The woman continued, oozing confidence and control like a dictator. 

Yang couldn’t say anything. Was she about to die? Probably. What other way would she go out than by the hand of the mother she’d always wanted to find? She wouldn’t die being a huntress. Protecting humanity, her friends. Weiss. Blake. Ruby. She’d die being miserable and worthless. She didn’t even care anymore. 

“Do it.” Yang spat. “Do it.” 

“Hmph.” Raven drew her sword back, sheathing it with a movement an artist would envy. “That’s the most backbone you’ve shown in weeks.” 

In weeks? Had Raven been watching her? For how long? The thought made Yang sick to her stomach. 

As if she were reading her mind, Raven responded matter of factly. “I’ve been keeping an eye on you.”

Zwei stopped barking and whimpered, still hiding in Yang’s shadow. The cold air stung against the wound on her neck. 

“Twice now, you’ve almost been killed.” Raven began, turning her back to her daughter as she sauntered over to the dead tree. She did not remove her mask. “The first time I saved you. The second? You were lucky. He would have killed you had your partner not saved you.”

Yang winced at the mention of Blake and Adam, unconsciously drawing her left arm to what remained of her right. Raven had been there. She was at The Fall of Beacon and did nothing.  
Her daughter had lost her arm and she’d done nothing. Pyrrha, Penny, and so many others were dead. And this bitch had done nothing. 

“You were there?” Yang spoke with her teeth clenched together, fighting back the tears forcing their way into her eyes. “My friends are dead! And I-”

“Beacon was destined to fall.” Raven interrupted with a confidence behind her voice that silenced Yang. She spoke like a tyrant. “It was always, going to fall.” 

The masked woman scoffed, facing her daughter. “This should have made you stronger, but instead, here you are. Slowly fading away with your… dog.”

Zwei grumbled at the offhanded comment, though Yang remained still, trying to stare into a pair of eyes that she couldn’t see. 

“Why now? After all these years?” Yang choked on her own words. 

“I hate you. I hate you more than anyone else!” Her thoughts flickered to a certain faunus girl who had become a close second.

Her eyes started to flash red as her anger overtook her. “You abandoned me and dad! Summer and Qrow! I’ve been looking for you my whole life, and you- you just decide to show up after I lost my arm? My team?! I might as well be dead!”

She felt hysterical. Before Beacon fell she’d gone through her head thousands of times what she would say to her mother when she finally found her. Years of mentally rehearsing some speech she’d give, some stabbing retort, something to heal her wounds. It seemed like a huge waste of time now. Yang was too scared to ask her the question that had always been at the forefront of her mind; why her mother had even had her in the first place.

“You will never get revenge on the man who did this to you, and you will never, find your team if you stay this way.” Her mother carried on, seemingly ignoring everything she just said. She placed her hands around her mask, lifting off the effigy of a Grimm’s skull.

Yang was disgusted. Disgusted by how much they looked alike. By how much more she resembled her mother than her father. The same eyes, the same jawline, the same fucking shade of red in the eyes. The even both shared the long mane of hair, making Yang consider getting a haircut for the first time in her life. The photo she’d kept close over the years had never bothered her like this. Seeing Raven before her was proof of concept and it stung.

“I’ll be straight with you. This is a waste of my time. Our enemies are hardly giving me the luxury. But,” She looked her daughter in the eyes, lips curling into a sickening smirk. “I can make you strong. Strong enough so that next time you won’t need saving.”

“Since when did you care?” Yang growled. It shouldn’t have taken losing her arm to finally get her mother to speak with her. 

“Believe it or not, I’d rather you didn’t die.” Raven paced, hand resting on the hilt of her sword. “The enemy is moving quickly and we need every asset we have to strike back. Do you want to be a burden, or do you want to fight?” 

A portal, filled with horrible swirling darkness appeared behind her as she replaced her mask, covering up a pair of eyes that betrayed nothing. 

“Come with me.” She said, her words more of a command than an offer. Raven stepped into the darkness of the portal, her jagged figure disappearing with an otherworldly sound. Yang stared vacantly at the portal. She wouldn’t leave things like this. She couldn’t. She’d waited more than long enough for the answers that had plagued her life. Her mother needed to pay.

It took her a moment to make her frozen legs carry her to the metal arm her mother had thrown on the ground. She grasped it with her left hand and entered the portal, letting the blackness swirl around and consume her. 

Oh, and Zwei followed after her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2! Updates won't be this frequent in the future, but I wanted to go ahead and send Yang off on her adventure. Thanks so much for reading and if you have something you'd like to mention, or a critique to give please shoot me a message in the comments :)


	3. Chapter 3

Yang was surprised at how instantaneous the teleportation was. She didn’t even have time to regret entering a weird hell portal with no prompting except from her clearly evil mom. Certainly her stomach was a bit full of regret. The transportation made her feel like she had just ridden a rollercoaster a thousand times in a row after eating a huge breakfast. 

While not entirely her breakfast, Yang promptly vomited out whatever food she had eaten through the day. Zwei gave her a funny look and backed away from Yang, his sensitive nose twitching at the smell. 

“Lovely.” Sounded a condescending voice. 

Yang looked up after wiping her mouth to see her mom sitting on a rock in front of a good sized campfire. She prodded the hot stones and wood with a long stick, mask and sword resting nearby on the ground. They were in a forest, evidently, that Yang didn’t recognize. It was impossible to tell how far they were from home, but she got the feeling that they weren’t on Patch anymore. 

Only now was it starting to set in what a stupid decision she had made. 

“Fuck you.” Yang wobbled over to the campfire, plopping down onto the ground next to Zwei and setting her mechanical arm on the dirt. She rarely swore out loud, used to censoring herself around Ruby and her dad, but now seemed as good a time as any to say screw it. 

The moon was still high in the sky, indicating that little to no time had passed from when she entered Raven’s portal. Was it her semblance? As far as she knew uncle Qrow couldn’t do anything like that. It was one of many, many mysteries surrounding the woman. 

She sighed. At the very least, her mind was far too distracted by the current situation to even think about what had happened back at Beacon. Not that it was a good distraction.  
“Where are we?” Yang was the first to speak after a pregnant pause between the two. 

“Does it really matter?” Raven began rolling her eyes. Before Yang could be annoyed, the woman continued. “We’re on Anima.”

_I wonder how close we are to Mistral?_ Yang thought to herself. A small hope budded in her chest that somehow she would find Ruby here. Not that she’d be much help to her, but her desire to see her little sister again was immense.

Silence arose between the two yet again, despite the phone book sized list of questions Yang had for Raven. If she asked them what were the chances of her getting a straight answer? Her mother- Raven, finally looked her in the eye. She almost looked sad, more uncomfortable than anything else. 

“I’m sure you have questions.” Raven let out a breath, trademark dictator like tone fading. 

“Great understatement.” Yang retorted, with a huff in agreement from Zwei. 

“I don’t have a lot of time with you. I have people I need to get back to.”

“People more important than your daughter? Did you even talk to dad?” Yang couldn’t look her in the eye. This whole situation was just beyond her. Everything that was happening she never could have anticipated. And who the hell were these people she was talking about? What could possibly be so important?

“No, I didn’t.” She said everything so matter of factly, as though Yang should already have all the answers. “Ask your questions. Afterwards you need to rest.”

Yang sneered. What incredible audacity this woman had. To show up after eighteen years (Yang had barely celebrated her birthday when it happened last month) only after her daughter nearly died. This was salt in an already deep, gaping, open wound. 

“I don’t get it. What is this, why are you here?” Yang asked, gritting her teeth. 

“Like I said. You won’t survive the coming darkness without help. Your… uncle, reminded me that perhaps you could use some guidance.” Raven’s voice trailed off a bit towards the end, and the apprehension she had was clear. 

“You just sound thrilled to be here, mom.” Yang spat the last word out with as much venom as she could muster, which to be fair, wasn’t much. She was exhausted. Spite was the only thing keeping her awake. 

Raven’s eyes narrowed and then widened when Yang mentioned the unfortunate fact, that Raven was, in fact, her mother. Her red eyes were almost unreadable, but Yang saw the same angry look she herself had worn reflected on her mother’s face. 

“I wish I wasn’t. The second you’re strong enough I’m leaving.” She hissed, her seemingly impervious shell cracking slightly. Not that Yang cared. It almost bothered her how good it felt to be angry at her mom. She could feel her semblance flaring up. Her rage was something other than despair. And it did feel good. Did that make her a bad person? No, of course not. Raven was a monster. 

Yang took a deep breath, and forced herself to calm down. She couldn’t get worked up like that. Her anger issues had already cost her so much, and she didn’t plan on botching this before she got the answers she wanted. 

The silence returned once again, becoming a faithful friend of the two. Zwei whimpered, and gave Yang’s hand a lick, as though he were encouraging the blond to just say what was on her mind. She wanted to ask Raven, ask her why she had abandoned her lover and her child, and why she never came back. 

“... why did you leave?” The question left Yang’s lips and hung in the air, only to be answered by Raven’s silence. That silence hurt Yang more than any answer could have. People would always leave her and she would never get answers. She should have expected as much. 

“Get some rest.” Was Raven’s eventual response. Yang wanted to cry, but she pushed the feeling back down into her gut. It was her own fault for expecting any sort of closure from Raven. From anyone. She regretted following her and leaving her dad behind without a word just based on a stupid impulse. 

Looking down at Zwei and giving the dog a quick scratch behind the ears, she wordlessly slumped down onto her back, gazing up at the night sky above them. She was overwhelmed with the desire to go home, and the realization that ‘home’ wasn’t really a place that existed anymore pushed her down into the earth. How she would find any rest was beyond her. 

“Yang.” 

It was the first time her mother had ever said her name. Yang had always wanted to savor the moment but it felt like a dagger being thrust into an already dead heart. 

“... goodnight.”

She wanted to say something crass in response, but she was far too tired. Closing her eyes, she made a silent wish that when she woke up all of this would be gone and she’d be back in her bed, back at Beacon, and that all of this had been a terrible nightmare.  
“Goodnight.” She responded, before she let her tired muscles take over.

\-----

She was somewhere, somewhere awful. Darkness pooled around her and smoke rose from the shattered remains of Beacon. The sky was red like blood and the air was full of the fetid stench of burnt skin and death. 

He approached her from the darkness, arising from the void like a demon crawling out of hell. Adam placed his hand on his sword and stalked towards her, each footfall echoing and echoing, a horrible nightmarish sound that made her place her hands over her ears. 

She didn’t have Ember Cecilia and as she looked desperately down to her right arm the appendage shattered into a million pieces, glasslike shards falling down to the ground. 

“No,” She mumbled, scarcely able to hear herself over how hard her heart was pounding. Adam’s approach continued, suddenly picking up into a sprint. Yang screamed. Her legs were frozen in place as though they were made of lead; she couldn’t run. She shouted for help, for someone to come save her. 

It was far too late now and no one was there. Everyone was gone. She felt his sword plunge through her chest, slicing through her skin and aura like a butcher’s knife. Yang tumbled to the ground in a heap as he withdrew the blade, deftly sheathing it in one quick motion. Her blood pooled around her and she could feel it staining her clothes, blocking out all other scents except for rust and iron. 

Her eyes looked up at the figure who had so mercilessly cut her down. Yang began to cry and wail, when she realized it wasn’t Adam at all. She screamed so loudly she thought she would tear her own throat apart as she looked into Blake’s amber eyes, the same eyes she used to think looked prettier than any gemstone. They were so cold and lifeless now, full of hate.  
Blake killed her. Her former partner just turned and walked away, leaving Yang to bleed out on the floor and be consumed by the fires that had taken Beacon. 

\-----

Yang awoke to the brisk, early spring air and Zwei licking her face. She hadn’t slept well. One of her recurring nightmares had visited her, making any genuine rest a far off desire.  
“Zwei stop…” she mumbled. “Don’t get dog slobber in my nose.”

Yang arose, her hair still in a ponytail, preventing the usually unruly mane from bursting out into a beastly mess. She glanced out at her surroundings, noting the extinguished fire pit and the distinct lack of Raven anywhere. 

“Just my luck Zwei, the crazy woman who abandoned me did it again.” Yang could feel her eyes sear and a lump forming in her throat. Some part of her had hoped that she’d awake back home in Patch, in her bed, and she’d go about her miserable routine as usual. 

Instead she was miserable somewhere on Anima with no conceivable way to get back home. 

“We’re screwed huh?” Yang looked at Zwei, the little corgi looking far too positive for the whole situation. She couldn’t even imagine what her dad must have been feeling at the moment. Not only had his first daughter left unannounced, but now his second daughter had left as well. A great reward for a dad who’s only crime was trying too hard. 

The sickening thought that she actually deserved this crawled in the back of her mind and shattered her resolve. She lay back down on her back, looking over at the mechanical arm that had been so hastily brought with her. Her mom wouldn’t have taken it if she hadn’t wanted her to put it on. Everyone she knew wanted her to put it on except herself. 

Taiyang had mentioned that putting the arm on at first would hurt quite a bit physically. Some strange nonsense about how the nerves and electronics got together. She didn’t have a lot of know how about biology; she’d always taken to mechanical engineering far better. 

It wasn’t the thought of pain that prevented her from wearing it. It was her own fear. Even if she put the arm back on, there was no way she could become the same person she had been before. It wouldn’t make her strong again. It wouldn’t make her problems go away. It certainly wouldn’t make her team come back. 

“Moping so early?” A cold voice dripping with sarcasm cut through the silence, answered only by a small bark from Zwei. Yang whipped around to find Raven stalking out of the trees looking exactly the same as she had yesterday, clad in her red and black outfit that just screamed, ‘don’t fuck with me’.

Yang spat in her direction. The feeling was bitter and pooled in her gut like a swamp but the familiar ecstasy of being angry again returned to her. It felt great to have something physical to be mad at. Not something fleeting like a memory. Not like Blake, whose face got more and more twisted by resent with each passing day. 

“Get up, you’re going to start training today.” Raven walked to the center of the camp, tossing Yang what appeared to be some type of jerky from some unknown critter. She begrudgingly ate it, knowing that whatever hell she was about to enter, she didn’t want to do it on an empty stomach. It tasted bland, but she managed to choke it down. 

Yang reached over to grab her metal arm before she was stopped by Raven. 

“Leave it. You don’t need it yet.” The older woman turned and headed back into the woods, without so much of a word of actual direction, presumably wanting Yang to follow after her. Yang raised an eyebrow as Raven’s silhouette disappeared. Why’d they even bring it if she wasn’t going to use it?

“Let’s go I guess.” Yang said to Zwei, giving the arm one last look before following after Raven. What else was she going to do? She didn’t know where they were and if this ‘training’ would be the death of her, then she didn’t honestly care. Regardless, she was glad Raven hadn’t forced her to wear the arm. 

Yang followed Raven for a good couple miles into the forest in silence, neither breaching any topic of conversation. Zwei followed dutifully after, keeping close to Yang the entire time like the good boy he was. Yang noticed how different the breeze felt on the new continent; it was cool but far damper than it was in Patch. The humidity didn’t bother her too much now, but she foresaw it being an annoyance in the future. Her hair would be a mess. 

Raven stopped abruptly in front of her, lifting her hand slightly to gesture for Yang to halt as well. The blond halted her gait, trying to see what exactly it was they were stopping for. Zwei seemed a bit on edge himself, and Yang could feel something rumbling in the air. 

The unmistakable roar of an Ursa rang out in the forest, the Grimm lumbering before them, not having noticed the trio yet. Yang remembered her initiation at Beacon; about how she’d so easily demolished the Ursa in her path and how she ran into Blake shortly afterward. The mysterious girl with whom, initially, she’d had a rather rough first meeting with. Back then she never would have thought that the faunus could have ever hurt her so much. Back then she was still invincible. 

Yang took a sharp breath and stepped backwards, snapping out of her memory. She couldn’t fight an Ursa right now. She’d be torn to pieces. Amputation aside, she wasn’t even half of who she used to be. 

“It’s a weak Grimm.” Raven spoke, circling around Yang. “If you can’t win you stand no chance against Salem.”

Who’s Salem? Yang thought to herself. Cinder and Adam were the enemy weren’t they? Cinder, the one Ruby was so determined to defeat. The girl who killed Pyrrha and was responsible for Penny’s death. The one who brought down beacon with the help of Adam Taurus, Blake’s former partner, who destroyed Yang’s life in the span of a few seconds. 

“Who says I even want to fight?” Yang snapped, glaring at the masked woman. Zwei whimpered a bit, glancing over at the Ursa who had just begun to notice the chattering behind it. 

“I’m done fighting!” Yang cried. “I’ll never be strong again. And I don’t want to be. Just take me back home, you’re wasting both our time.”

Raven clicked her tongue, hand tense on the hilt of her sword as she came far too close for comfort. “What you don’t understand is that the enemy doesn’t care if you want to fight or not. They’ll find you and it’s only a matter of time. They will kill you or worse. You’re not safe in Patch, or anywhere!”

Yang backed away from her mother, the rising tone in the woman’s voice making her far more fearful than the Ursa behind them. 

“Then why don’t you just kill me mom!” Yang couldn’t help herself from shouting right back at her. Her voice broke as Zwei grabbed the hem of her pants in his mouth, tugging his master in an attempt to alert her to the Grimm about to strike behind her. 

“Shit!” Yang rolled out of the way, landing roughly on her side to a face full of rocks and dirt.  
Thanks for the warning Raven! Yang thought to herself, scurrying back up to her feet. She’d have to run away. There was no fighting that Ursa; she’d die. Horribly. A sick, dark part of her welcomed the thought. 

“Fight back!” Raven hissed, deftly moving out of the way of the Ursa as though it took her no effort at all. Yang didn’t respond, instead making a break for the forest, flight overriding every other sense she had. She didn’t know where she was going, but anywhere was better than there. 

Raven appeared before her, the older woman’s speed far outmatching her own, and pushed her back down to the ground without a word. She had no intention of letting Yang escape. 

“The strong live, the weak die. Remember?” 

The Ursa grabbed Yang’s jacket with its maw and pulled her away, dragging her through the rough terrain of the forest. Yang yelled and fought back against the Grimm, trying to turn and smash its head with her legs. It was a pathetic, flailing attempt, and the Ursa reacted as though a fly had spat on it. She contorted her body and managed to pull herself out of her jacket, escaping the Grimm before it smashed its paw into the space her head used to be. 

Yang panted, lungs screaming for air and blood rushing faster than it had in months, making her dizzy from adrenaline. Her muscle memory made her drop into a boxing stance and fire off Ember Cecilia. An Ember Cecilia which of course, was not actually there. 

“Shit…” Yang mumbled staring down at her unarmed hand. Desperation and fear overcame her and she stood there like a statue as the Ursa attacked her, drawing blood and sending her flying into a nearby tree. 

The impact stole her breath and shook her bones, wood splintering and exploding. Struggling to her feet, tiny spots of blood appeared on the ground from an injury above her right temple, mixing with the sweat on her brow and making her vision blurry. 

“You’re just gonna let me die aren’t you.” Yang mumbled, wiping the blood away with her hand. 

“Fuck you.” She hissed at her mother. Raven said nothing and Yang’s blood boiled. She remembered reading Ruby a story about a huntsman who had run at the speed of the wind and saved his lover from a giant Ursa right at the last second. Her little sister had always liked that story; she liked to blast around the yard in a poof of rose petals pretending to save the dame or damsel in distress. It was real cute.

No one was coming to save her though. The last person she would see was her piece of shit mother who abandoned her, who was going to watch her die, and who probably didn’t even care in the slightest. 

“Fuck you!” Yang screamed, semblance flaring up. She didn’t know who she was trying to talk to. Tears streamed out of her eyes. She couldn’t run and if she couldn’t run she wasn’t going to give her mother the satisfaction of watching her go out like a candle. She’d go out like a blaze. 

The Ursa came at her again, charging at its prey. Yang dug her heels into the dirt, wishing she’d had boots on instead of a pair of now filthy white sneakers. She clenched her fist, knuckles bright white as she pivoted and sent a sharp hook at the Ursa’s face. 

It reared back only slightly from the blow, clearly somewhat underwhelmed by Yang’s punch. Her muscles had grown weak from months of being out of practice and her balance was thrown from the lack of her right arm. She pulled her arm back for another punch though, trying to put more of her body weight behind the blow. 

Another blow landed against the Ursa, the Grimm growing more irritated than injured. It lunged forward and tackled Yang, crushing the huntress against the ground as it pinned her body with one of its massive paws. The Ursa raised its other claw high into the air, bringing the sharp appendage down onto Yang. The claw dug into her shoulder, her aura preventing the blow from splitting her in two. She activated her semblance and wrestled with the bear, getting both her legs underneath the Grimm’s torso and launching it off of her in a blaze of fire. 

The Grimm roared, black ooze and smoke pouring out from a now open wound in its chest. Yang let out a cry, charging forward and ignoring the pain from her wounds, letting the damage make her stronger. 

“Fuck. You!” She launched her fist into the Grimm, repeatedly slamming it back down into its body, repeating her angry mantra with every strike. Up and down, her fist plunged into the Ursa, like a dangerous piece of machinery. 

Eventually the Grimm faded back into the darkness, leaving only black shreds of what used to be a mighty bear. Yang’s fist rested in the ground, covered in bruises and dirt, as the sweat ran off her body and fell onto the ground. Her vision was unfocused, her mind muddy and unclear, and it took her a solid ten minutes to finally bring herself up from the ground. 

Everything hurt but she felt weirdly good. Too good. She hated it, hated that she felt some of the joy of battle from before she lost her arm. It was always a part of her, the dark part, the angry part, that she’d been fighting against ever since Summer died and she had to take care of Ruby. 

She wanted her mom now more than ever. Not Raven, Summer. She wanted her dad and Ruby. She even wished Weiss was there. And she wanted Blake. 

She toppled back down to the earth, exhausted and no longer to keep herself standing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3! Longer one this time. Blake and the others will be making an appearance next chapter. As always, I hope you enjoyed it and leave me a message if you spot something egregious! :) Thanks for the comments by the way!


	4. Chapter 4

_“Surprise Blake!”_

_“Guys what… what is this?”_

_Blake entered into her dorm being thrust a package by her three teammates. It had been a few days since she had run from them. Since they’d run into Torchwick and she failed to stop him and the white fang. They had all been unexpectedly kind to her since her return, with Weiss’s change in demeanor being the most surprising. Ruby was always kind to her and Yang was a far better partner than she could have hoped for._

_Things had felt somewhat weird between the team regardless though and Blake was still incredibly self conscious that they knew she was a faunus. It was a secret she had intended to keep that was shattered within the first few months of school._

_Some secret._

_Ruby and Yang had wide, shit eating grins on their faces, and even Weiss looked somewhat satisfied with what was taking place._

_“It’s a gift!” Ruby squeaked. “Y’know, you seemed kinda down after what happened last weekend and uh, we wanted to do something nice for you, so we went out into Vale and then Weiss and me argued a bunch about what to get you and-!”_

_“It’s nothing too huge.” Yang chimed in, silencing her sister with a playful punch on the shoulder. “But we all thought you could use it. Even ice queen here.”_

_“Hey, I told you to stop calling me that!”_

_“Sure thing ice Schnee.”_

_Blake couldn’t help but laugh. The three of them were certainly all… unique. When she was with the White Fang she’d never met people who were quite as jovial as them. Everything was also so dark and morbid with the Fang, even before her father stepped down as leader. Fighting discrimination and hate was not a task full of levity._

_“Well? What are you waiting for, open it.” Weiss said, gesturing to the gift between Blake’s hands. Blake shrugged and sat down on her bottom bunk, clearly not going to sneak her way out of this situation. Her fingers pulled off the lid to reveal a vast selection of teas, some she knew to be very fine and rather expensive, all arranged neatly in a circle._

_“There’s some Puurrllgrey in there.” Yang joked, eliciting a groan from literally everyone else in the room. Blake herself wasn’t thrilled with the cat joke, even though she knew Yang meant no harm. The fire-starter was always quite the joker, though there was something about her that Blake could never quite put her finger on. Something hidden beneath the surface that was a well kept secret. The faunus could tell because she herself was the same way, even though hers was now known to everyone in the room._

_“Ugh, Yang, I’m officially kicking you out of the team.” Ruby joked, raising her arms in the air in a mock display of agony. “But what do you think Blake?”_

_She looked over the teas again, cradling a jar of very fine oolong in her hands. What did her three teammates, her three human teammates, think she had done to deserve this? She had lied to them. Kept her true identity hidden under a bow. Even after learning she had been in the White Fang they still wanted to be friends with her. It didn’t make any sense._

_“It’s… it’s amazing. I love tea, but this is… this is too much. I don’t deserve this.” She didn’t deserve anything after what she had done._

_Weiss scoffed. “Of course you do. Everyone can use a pick me up when they’re feeling down. I myself have a very fine single origin coffee blend sourced directly from Mistral that I enjoy on a rainy da-”_

_“Oooh, my name’s Weiss, I drink coffee black, I’m fancy.” Ruby snorted, Yang adding in a chortle of her own._

_“A cream and five sugars is too much Ruby Rose! I was willing to let it slide earlier, but one of these days I will sit everyone in this room down and we will enjoy a proper coffee cupping.”_

_“A wha?”_

_“You’re insufferable.”_

_The group decided to go downstairs and use the fancy electric kettle in the kitchen to brew Blake her first cup of ‘friend’ tea, as Ruby put it. According to Weiss since the kettle they had in their dorm only had one temperature setting it was ‘inappropriate’ for brewing tea properly. Ruby and Weiss left the room first, sharing a weird conversation on what the appropriate amount of cream to put in coffee was._

_Blake was just about to exit when she felt a gloved hand tap her on the shoulder._

_“Hey Blake?” Yang asked, looking surprisingly sheepish._

_“Hm?” Blake hadn’t expected the blond needing anything._

_“I kinda feel like a jerk. That uh… cat joke from before, I didn’t hurt your feelings did I? I wasn’t really thinking. I’m really sorry.”_

_The faunus was surprised to hear such a weirdly candid question from Yang. Even Sun, a fellow faunus hadn’t apologized when he had made offhanded comments about her being in the white fang. She’d brushed it all off and attributed it to them being jokesters._

_“It wasn’t that big of a deal.” Blake shrugged, trying to assuage the concern reflected in those lilac eyes._

_“It’s a big deal if I hurt you Blake.” Yang responded, playing with a lock of hair in her hand. “I know it can be easy to write it off when people hurt you but we’re partners.’_

_The corners of Yang’s mouth pulled into a small smile. “I want it to work y’know?”_

_Blake paused for a moment, considering what she would say next. It had hurt her at first. Made her feel like her partner was only focused on her cat ears, but if this current conversation was any indication, that wasn’t the case._

_“It… It didn’t make me feel great.” Blake admitted, suddenly becoming very interested in not making eye contact. “But I know you didn’t mean anything bad. Next time maybe just… keep it between us? Not in front of the others.”_

_Yang looked sad but somewhat relieved. “Thanks for being honest. I’ll try not to put my foot in my mouth in the future. C’mon, I’ve kept you too long. Ruby was really excited about this coconut tea she picked out for you.”_

_Yang started out the door, with Blake following after her. The next four years might just be ok._

\---

Well, it was supposed to be four years.

Blake stared back at her reflection in the ocean water, the visage blurred by the rapid passing of the waves. Salt water crests quickly formed small mountains of water that just as quickly faded back into the sea. It was somewhat soothing watching the water, though she worried sometimes she would fall over the railing into the sea. She hadn’t slept well in the months since Beacon fell and drowsiness had become a close friend. 

Her mind was flooded with memories of her team every night. Not a single day went by that she didn’t think about them and every time she did it was agony. Everytime she remembered her team the scar on her abdomen where Adam had stabbed her ached. It felt like someone was pouring acid in her wound. 

_It’s ok._ She thought to herself. _You’ll be home soon. You’re safe._

Blake was anxious to get back to Menagerie; she’d been especially on edge lately. A few weeks ago she had become convinced someone was following her. It had been a common feeling she’d felt the past three months, but there was a weird… clumsiness almost, to whomever the White Fang had sent after her. Surely they wouldn’t have followed her onto the boat though. Blake had used every single underworld contact she had ever made in order to get a fake ID and purchase a ticket to travel back home. 

The whole situation was awful. She’d spent the immediate weeks after the fall living off the streets, scrounging where she could and sleeping under abandoned highway underpasses. She’d caught a terrible virus almost immediately the first week and spent almost the entirety of her second week nursing herself back to health. The cold of Vale’s winter surprised her and left her longing for the warmth of her dorm at Beacon. Having Yang sleeping above her was like having her own personal space heater on cold fall nights. Having her team there made her feel safe. The kind of safety she had only ever felt back home on Menagerie. 

Her wound from Adam had never quite been properly treated either, leaving a nasty looking scar right above her left hip bone. It looked like a crooked, twisted, crescent moon. First aid had prevented it from getting infected and killing her, but it would always remain a permanent reminder of what had happened during the Fall. It would forever remind her that she had played a part in the destruction of her friends’ lives. 

She glanced over at a pair of children playing on the deck of the boat. They seemed happy and carefree, their joy somehow making her feel even more miserable. Blake longed for her team. She wanted Weiss to make some stupid rich person joke, she wanted Ruby to make some silly comment in response, and she wanted Yang to pat her on the back, laughing at the other two. 

“Traveling alone?”

The words nearly made Blake jump off the goddamn boat and into the ocean. Her hands flew to Gambol Shroud, ready to draw the weapon on whoever approached her without a second notice. 

Her heart sank. It was just the captain of the ship. A kind looking elderly man that had only shown her and the other passengers kindness. She sure as shit wished he hadn’t crept up on her like that though. 

“Now now, no need to be alarmed.” He spoke, in the tone of some refined gentleman. “I’m just here to talk.”

Blake didn’t want to talk and she wanted to make that clear. “And why is that?”

“Not many people travel by boat on their own.” The captain responded, leaning against the railing of the ship. “It can be a very lonely voyage. But I’ve found that those who do tend to have more… interesting stories.” 

The faunus clenched her fist and turned to the railing. She could tell this man wasn’t cruel, and that ultimately, he was likely a man of great courage. Very few ships were continuing their voyages after what happened in Vale. Travel between countries was no longer a simple thing. 

“Maybe it’s better for some people to be alone.” Blake said, staring at her reflection in the water. She said it far more to convince herself that her actions were justified than to continue the conversation with the captain. 

Her heart leapt into her throat and she nearly took yet another dive into the water as the children from before ran by. She felt ashamed of herself; she had been reduced to jumping at the sound of kids playing. The captain laughed at her predicament, making her feel even more self conscious about herself. 

“Well with someone as paranoid as you, a few friendly faces couldn’t hurt.” 

“Who says I’m paranoid?” Blake shot back. She really didn’t want to talk right now, especially with a stranger. She didn’t ever really want to talk about it. 

The captain just laughed again. “No one dear, no one.”

A smile formed underneath his bushy beard and he began to walk away. “I’ll leave you be then.”

Blake let out a sigh of relief, about to return to her post at the railing when he spoke to her again. 

“But fair warning; these trips can be awfully boring.” 

Blake let the captain return to his post and herself back to the water, watching the waves rise and fall. She couldn’t remember being bored back at Beacon. It was literally impossible to be bored around team RWBY, JNPR, and SSSN. There was never a dull moment with such colorful characters around. 

_Dammit._ She thought to herself. She needed to stop thinking about Beacon; there was no going back, and there was no point in lingering in those memories. Instead, she forced herself to think of home, of Menagerie. It made the bow on the top of her head feel heavy. It was the bow she’d worn everyday at Beacon, even once her friends learned who she was because she still didn’t want anyone else to find out. She’d never worn something like that in Menagerie, where everyone walked around as they were. There were no humans there to be cruel to you, just the occasional crude sailer coming into port. It was a place where faunus could feel equal.

On a whim she pulled the bow out of her hair, letting her ears freely rest against the sea breeze. She wouldn’t need it in Menagerie. It only served as another painful reminder of her time in Vale and it was time to move on. She would never see any of them ever again. 

The bow drifted from her hand into the water, the waves consuming the cloth and bringing it to gods only knew where. 

She remained on the deck for most of the evening, forcing back memories and watching the various ship goers come and go across the deck. The sun was beginning to set, colors mixing together to form a real life painting against the horizon. She began to leave, intending to return to her cot when something caught her eye on the ship. 

A figure wrapped in a brown cloak, standing on the top of the ship. Her feelings of being followed had all been confirmed. Adam had sent someone after her and put everyone on the boat at danger. Gambol Shroud flew off her back and into her hands, legs crouching down into a fighting stance. 

“Who’s there?!” She cried out, watching the figure flee as she confronted them.

 _Coward, just do your worst._ She thought to herself.

Just as she was about to pursue the unknown assassin, the boat shook violently, making Blake lose her balance. The crew members and other passengers on the boat let out a litany of gasps, swears of disbelief leaving their lips. 

A huge sea born Grimm arose from the water, blotting out the setting sun and casting the ship in a veil of Shadow. The crew scrambled to their positions, quickly readying the ship’s defenses. Blake swore under her breath. Not only was there a White Fang operative on the boat, but now a massive Grimm threatened the the very ship itself. Swallowing her fear, Blake charged at the Grimm serpent. She would fight back, not let this stupid creature kill her and the other passengers. 

The Grimm roiled around the ship, circling the watercraft like a bird of prey. Blake made her way to the highest point on the boat, letting lose a few rounds from her machine pistol as the crew opened up the cannons, clearly not willing to back down either. She smiled to herself; their courage was contagious. 

She leapt into the air and struck the Grimm with her blade, dancing around its head using Gambol Shroud’s ribbon as the crew pelted it with cannon fire from below. Initial strikes were proving to be ineffective. Blake had never seen a Grimm like this before, but it was clear that it was far stronger than any Ursa or Beowulf. 

Falling back to the bridge of the ship, Blake landed rather ungracefully, just barely avoiding smashing her face against the wood of the deck. She gripped her sword and readied herself to strike again, despite having been injured slightly by the fall. The crew readied its largest cannon, hoping that a round from their most powerful gun would put a hole right through the Grimm. 

Unphased by the humans’ attempted to fight it off, the Grimm unfolded its hidden wings, taking to the skies as it roared, easily dodging the cannon fire from the ship. Golden electricity sparked within its mouth and it was clear to Blake that she need to move quickly to stop it from damaging the ship. 

Or at least that had been her plan. A smelly, large tennis shoe landed right on her head, leaving her stumbling for balance on the deck of the ship as she watched the cloaked character from before launch themselves at the dragon. 

Blake couldn’t believe her eyes. Of all the people she had expected under that cloak, every foul cruel agent from the White Fang, it turned out to be quite possibly one of the last people she thought she’d ever see again. 

“Sun!?” She shouted, rubbing the spot on her head were the monkey faunus had (in his usual boorish fashion) used her head as a launch pad. He activated his semblance, sending out clones of himself to stop the Grimm from lighting up the place. Luckily, he managed to divert the Grimm’s blast, the electricity blasting into the open ocean instead. 

“What are you doing here!?” Blake made a mental note to get some payback for the cranium catapult stunt later. Still, there better be a good explanation as to why he had shown up. 

“Uh, y’know, just hanging out!” Sun screeched as he held onto the serpent’s head before getting zapped with electricity and plummeting into the ocean. Black jumped back into the action quickly. She had plenty of questions for Sun but they would have to wait; taking care of the Grimm took priority. Using Gambol Shroud’s whip like capabilities, she sent herself flying and managed to catch Sun before he had an even rougher landing than she had earlier. 

“My hero!” He said in a goofy voice, making fun of the fact that Blake had caught him bridal style. 

“You’re not supposed to be here!” She spat back, glaring at him with her amber eyes. 

“Hey, you look like you could use all the help you could get.”

Blake promptly let him fall unceremoniously onto the ground with a grunt, not wanting to entertain Sun’s goofy jokes right now. 

“Shut up and fight.” She stepped over his body and ran back towards the action, knowing that they had little time left to save the ship. The crew had yet to hit the Grimm with their heavy cannon, the serpent simply moving too fast for them to knock in a good shot. Blake knew that she and Sun could hold it down though, possibly giving the captain the chance he needed to send the Grimm back to hell. 

She ran to block a bolt of energy from striking the bridge of the ship, before Sun threw himself in front of her, apparently ready to get back in the fight. 

“Huntsmen!” The captain called out from his post. “If you can clip its wings and draw it to the bow, we can take it.” 

Blake glanced up at Sun, hoping he’d gotten the message properly. He gave her a snarky look. “Well, you’re the one with the sword.” 

She wanted to vomit on him. As if he couldn’t use his guns to achieve the same effect. Now was not the time for his stupid jokes. Not when she had been trying to forget him and everyone else at beacon. It made her miss her team.

Sun used his semblance once again to act as a multistage launch pad for Blake to reach the dragon. She payed back the favor from earlier and smashed into the real him with her boots, secretly hoping that she tracked dirt on him. She dodged a series of electric blasts from the Grimm before landing on its wings, severing the fibers with her sword. The monster screamed in agony as it lost control of its ability to fly. 

Blake prepared herself to land on the ground, only to yet again have Sun rush in under her and catch her with a loud thump. 

“Now’s when you say it.” Sun grinned, turning his head, ready to receive praise. 

“Ugh.” Blake rolled out of his arms and started heading back to the ship. The fight still wasn’t over yet. Sun followed after her as they lead the Grimm back to the ship, the crew ready to launch their powerful cannon against the Grimm. 

The ship rammed its bow into the monster and let off the heavy cannon at point blank range, severing the serpent’s body in two. It was a momentous victory and the crews' cheers could likely be heard for miles. Sun cheered and hollered, raising his hand up to receive a high five. 

And then Blake smacked his face as hard as she possibly could.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Blake! There will be more flashbacks sprinkled about detailing the girls time at Beacon. Blake's bits will be canon volume 4 with some big changes here and there. As always, I hope you enjoyed it, and if you've got critique or something else you'd like to say go for it!


	5. Chapter 5

_A school dance. It seemed like such a silly thing, but it was a welcome distraction from classes and school work. A night of fun, watered down punch, and music that was varying degrees of bad. All of them were still just barely able to be considered full adults, so a little high-school style get together was still well within the acceptable range._

_Yang could appreciate a dance. Even Ruby and Weiss seemed excited. Blake, however, didn’t seem interested. Not that she seemed interested in anything in particular lately. It broke Yang’s heart to see her teammate so down in the dumps and she was thankful when Weiss finally coerced her into talking with them. She’d hoped Blake would have opened up on her own, but baby steps were ok too._

_The firecracker was resting alone in her dorm room, reading a book on the faunus rights movement she’d picked up the the Library. It was depressing reading for sure, but she felt ill equipped to talk with Blake on the subject, and it made her feel ignorant. Taiyang and Summer had always raised her and her sister to be respectful of faunus; that they were no different from humans. Yang regretted thinking that most of humanity thought the same way she did; her experiences with Cardin and the book she was reading painted a far darker story. She wondered what terrible things had happened to Blake through her life that made her feel compelled to hide her heritage under a big black bow._

_It broke Yang’s heart._

_Blake entered the dorm silently, like a ca-, no, she was going to cut back on the cat jokes. A little. Yang quickly tried to hide the book she was reading, not wanting Blake to realize how little she knew about the civil rights movement._

_“You can keep reading Yang.” Blake chuckled, setting down a stack of books of her own on her lower bunk. The ninja like girl had been in a considerably better mood once they had all decided to go investigate Torchwick and the white fang in a few days; it was probably all the faunus could do to hold herself back until them._

_“Where are Ruby and Weiss?” Blake asked, placing her hands on the edge of Yang’s bed._

_“Weiss dragged Ruby to an opera or something weird like that. I’m sure we’ll get the full gorey story once they get back.” Yang responded, glancing over at her partner. She’d noticed more and more that Weiss was trying to spend time with Ruby; it was pretty cute._

_Blake really was beautiful. Her eyes were a gorgeous shade of amber with sharp, stark pupils. Her black hair was like some fine fabric from Mistral, silky and flowing, bringing out all the curves of her face. Sometimes she would take off her bow, only in the presence of team RWBY, and let her faunus heritage show. Yang loved her cat ears. She loved watching how they moved and twitched depending on what Blake was doing and how they offered a separate window into the girl’s soul._

_“They’ll be back soon I think.” Yang added, realizing that she had been staring a little too long. She’d been feeling rather conflicted about her partner lately. Initially, when the dance was announced, part of her wanted to ask Blake to the dance. It wasn’t exactly common, but there were a few queer folks at Beacon. It wouldn’t have been too weird to ask her to a silly dance._

_Blake was a faunus though. And she had Sun. A handsome, strong, funny faunus who wasn’t subtle about his own crush on Blake. Yang had known that he would ask Blake to the dance and wasn’t surprised at all when he did during their board game. Why would she be interested in her human partner when someone like Sun was around?_

_“Hm.” Blake hummed, pulling herself back down into her own bunk. The faunus girl didn’t always want to have a long conversation about things and Yang respected that. Sometimes a quiet moment was just what the doctor ordered, especially when one considered the number of colorful characters at Beacon. Yang loved the comfortable silences between them._

_Her voice chirped from under Yang’s bunk. “Yang, why were you reading that book? Barson’s Account of the Civil Rights Movement? It’s not exactly light reading.”_

_Crap. She’d been found out. Blake had always been super observant of her environment. Another thing Yang respected about her._

_“I dunno I just… we’ve been over it in our history class but not really in detail. If it’s something you’re fighting for, it’s something I want to know more about. Team RWBY’s in this together.”_

_Yang couldn’t see what Blake’s reaction was since she was underneath her. Hopefully nothing too bad. She’d been honest about her intentions._

_“That’s… very admirable of you.” Blake finally responded. “A lot of humans don’t ever bother to take an interest. It doesn’t effect them so they don’t care.”_

_She didn’t know what to say in response; as a result, the silence between the two returned.  
“Hey Blake?”_

_“Hm?”_

_“Did you know any humans and faunus who were… y’know, together?” Yang asked, unable to keep the question at bay any longer. It was a stupid question. Blake had Sun. At Signal she’d thought most of the crushes and tangled webs of who liked who were stupid and pointless._

_“Why ask?” Blake responded, leaning out the edge of her bed to look up at Yang. She rolled over the edge to make eye contact with the faunus._

_“Just curious I guess.” She managed to keep her cool without blurting out that she’d like to go on a date with Blake, who she was pretty sure wouldn’t be even remotely interested._

_“It’s not very common.” Her partner began. “But I’ve heard of it happening, not that I’ve ever seen it personally. I don’t think most faunus have the luxury of falling for a human that respects them.”_

_Yang’s heart sank. Blake’s statement seemed fairly damning. To begin with, she’d have to be lucky that Blake was also interested in girls, which Yang wasn’t sure about. The racial barrier though? That was an insurmountable wall._

_“Hopefully one day it’ll be better.” Yang said, not betraying her disappointment._

_“I hope so too.” Blake sighed. “There’s a long, long way to go.”_

_“Hey, I know you just got back, but do you wanna go grab something to drink? Coffee, tea? I know some good places for the hard stuff if you’d prefer.” Yang interjected, hoping to change the subject. “I’ve got a lot of questions about this book if you don’t mind humoring me.”_

_Blake chuckled. “Sounds good, Yang.”_

\------

Once again, Yang awoke to the feeling of Zwei licking her face. She gently pushed him away, barely able to do so considering how sore her arm was. In fact, literally every single inch of her hurt. Her fight with the Ursa, while she somehow came out on top, had left her with zero reserves left over. Someone had bandaged up the cut over her eye, but the wound was still swollen and made it hard to see. 

She remained lying on the ground but rolled over onto her side, seeing that she’d been moved back to the same camp she’d been in after she followed Raven. The older woman was sitting before the fire yet again, tending the embers as the sun gradually set in the sky. 

Yang scratched Zwei behind the ears, increasingly glad that the dog had followed after them. It seemed impossible to keep him down for long. 

“Welcome back.” Raven spoke, in her standard uninterested tone. Yang watched her across the fire pit, the same woman who had nearly let her die yesterday without a care. Bitch was far too kind of a word. 

“Send me back home.” Yang said, finally bringing herself back from the ground. 

“Now why would I do that?” Raven responded, maskless face glancing over at her daughter. 

“You said it yourself yesterday.” Yang shot back. “You don’t want to be here, and I sure as shit don’t want to be either, so send. Me. Back.”

“You barely defeated the Ursa from before.” Raven continued narrowing her eyes and ignoring Yang’s request. “If you want to recover your strength that was barely passing as a first step.” 

“I don’t want to.” Yang spat, grabbing a handful of dirt in her hand. “I don’t want to fight anymore, and I don’t want to see you ever again.”

Raven stood up from her perch, looking down at Yang and Zwei. She paced around the fire, appearing annoyed with the whole situation. Yang hated how she acted like she was so above everything.

“Do you remember your fights from the tournament?” She asked, catching Yang off guard. 

“That doesn’t have anything to do with this.” Yang responded, wincing a bit as she remembered the whole incident with Mercury. “Are you saying you actually watched my fights?”

Despite what Raven had said earlier about watching her, Yang found it very hard to believe that this crazy woman had been watching the Vytal tournament. She didn’t seem interested in students beating the tar out of each other, but she was evil. Maybe she enjoyed it.

“You were a mess.” Raven smirked, the condescending energy rolling off of her. “You may have won, but against real opponents? You would have been destroyed. Your strength means nothing it you meaninglessly throw it at the enemy.”

“I don’t care anymore.” Yang wanted to deck Raven right across her stupid face. Her stupid face that looked scarily similar to Yang’s. “Send me home.”

“Yang.” Her daughter’s name felt heavy on her lips. 

The firecracker looked up at that. Her mom had only spoken her name once until this point, the only evidence Yang had that Raven actually knew her name. 

“What?” Yang asked. Zwei whimpered. 

“I saw your sister.”

Yang exploded to her feet, bringing herself inches away from Raven, her now red pair of eyes matching the same shade as her mother’s.  
“I swear, if you did anything to her I’-”

“She’s fine. Qrow is following her.” Raven said matter-of-factly, not intimidated by Yang even slightly or budging an inch. “They’ll arrive in Mistral soon if that blond moron realizes where he put their map.”

Yang backed away. Just hearing that Ruby was ok was enough to cool her blood a bit. It had been an awfully long while since she received her last letter from Ruby and the remains of team JNPR. 

“She resembles Summer.” Raven added, her new comment stoking the flames of anger in Yang again. 

“Don’t talk about her!” She shouted, hand clenched into a tight fist. “What would you even know? She didn’t abandon us like you did! You should have died instead of her.”

Raven’s smirk fell. Yang couldn’t tell what expression now lay on the mysterious woman’s face. Regret? Sadness? She didn’t even know why Raven was bringing this up in the first place. All it did was make Yang feel worse. Her throat felt pinched and she felt the ever familiar salty sting of tears in her eyes. 

“Why did you even have me?” Yang choked on her words. She had always wondered. It’s not like Raven couldn’t simply have terminated her pregnancy. The older woman walked away from Yang and sat back down by the fire, eyes locked on the rising flames. She looked back at Yang, red eyes betraying a shocking degree of emotion. 

“Taiyang always wanted a child.” She finally answered, after a brief pause. “And I would not have had you if I didn’t choose to.” 

“You know that’s pretty hard to believe.” Yang took a spot on the other side of the fire, trying to keep herself from throwing rocks at Raven. Apparently, for whatever reason, Raven decided to actually sort of answer her question. Shocking, really.

“I have no reason to lie to you Yang.” Raven turned her eyes back to the fire. “I saw you die on the train at Mountain Glenn. I could have let you die but I saved you. I told myself I would save you once, and only once. I’m breaking my rule by bringing you here.”

“You saw me die?” Yang responded, dumbfounded. Perhaps Raven had misspoke. “What the hell are you talking about?” 

Raven’s face formed into a crooked grin. “I’ve told you plenty already. It’s late. Go. To. Bed.”

Yang’s brow dropped. Naturally, she wouldn’t actually get anything out of her mother, and evidently, Raven had no intention of letting her go home. She snuggled up with Zwei in front of the fire and wordlessly went to bed, trying to think of pleasant memories of Ruby, her father, and Summer, to bring her some sort of comfort through the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aw geez five chapters! Yang's misadventure continues. In case you were wondering if Yang and Blake are going to meet again at the end of this story... ;)
> 
> As always thank you so much for reading and leave a comment if you see something or just wanna say something!


	6. Chapter 6

“Seriously, it was no big deal!” Sun began, receiving compliments and praise from a group of passengers on the boat. Blake stared him down from a ways away, eyes narrowed as she watched the monkey faunus enlarge his ego. He sauntered back over to Blake with the same swagger and goofiness he’d always carried with him at Beacon, as if nothing bad had ever happened to them. 

“It’s like they’ve never seen a fight before.” Sun joked, placing his hands on his hips. 

“What are you doing here Sun?” Blake finally pushed forward the elephant on the boat. Back at Beacon, she and Sun had been a bit of an… on again off again couple. When they had first met, Blake had been pleasantly intrigued by Sun and never directly rejected his advances. He was handsome, and he had at least expressed some interest in fighting against the White Fang. However, he often completely missed the point. Despite her objections he still engaged in petty theft and was frankly terrible at keeping her faunus nature a secret, but he was goofy and fun. It had been enjoyable spending time with him at Beacon. 

“Digging the new outfit by the way.” He responded, ignoring Blake’s question. “Never did like the bow.” 

She slapped away his hand as it came near her ears. Sometimes she couldn't believe him. Blake had always been sensitive about the topic. “Sun!” 

“Geez.” He reeled back from his friend. 

“Have you been following me!?” She nearly shouted the question, ears pressed against her skull. She was furious. How long had Sun been following her? She didn’t care what reasons he had to give. The entire reason she ran in the first place was that she didn’t want anyone to follow her. Not Sun, not Ruby, not Weiss, and definitely not -

“I saw you run.” Sun began, looking hurt by Blake’s words. “After Beacon fell.”

Blake’s anger cracked at the mention of The Fall.

“You made sure everyone was ok with us in Vale and then you just took off without saying anything.”

She leaned over the edge of the boat, avoiding making any eye contact with Sun.  
“I had to.” It was something she’d repeated to herself over and over again since that night. “You wouldn’t understand.”

“No I get it.” Blake was surprised at Sun’s response, glancing back over at him. “When you left, I knew exactly what you were doing.”

Blake let herself smile a bit. Did Sun really understand why she left? 

“You were going on a one woman rampage against the White Fang!” Sun shouted, striking a silly pose. 

“What?!” Blake hissed. That was the farthest thing from what she wanted. She wanted to be as far away from the White Fang as possible. Feeling like a fool, Blake scolded herself for thinking her fellow faunus could understand her actions. He didn’t even know about Adam. How could he know why she left?

“You always felt like the Fang was your fight.” Sun continued. Blake could not get over his ignorance. The Fang was every faunuses’ fight, not just her. That was something they’d often argued about at Beacon. 

“They show up, trash your school, hurt your friends; it makes sense!” 

“I can’t believe you.” Blake was beyond disappointed. She didn’t want Sun here, or anyone for that matter, but especially not some former paramore from a life that no longer existed. The way he spoke about Beacon made her want to slap him again. How could he be so matter-of-fact about it? People were dead. Lives were destroyed. And so much of it had been her fault. 

“There’s no way I’m letting you do this alone!” Sun said, still acting dense as hell. “It’s an honorable approach but you need someone watching your back.”

He put his arm around her shoulder. “After all, us faunus gotta stick together after all!” 

She pushed him away. “You’re wrong Sun.”  
Blake knew if she didn’t spell it out for him he’d never understand her. 

“You’re so… wrong.” She walked away from him. “I’m not going anywhere near the White Fang. Not yet.”

“Seriously?” Sun didn’t seem to believe her. 

“I need to sort some things out.” She held her arms in front of her, feeling vulnerable and scared. 

“Then why not do it with your team? Your friends?”

“You’re one to talk!” Blake hissed back, dodging the question. “Assuming Neptune, Scarlet, and Sage aren’t hiding under deck!” 

“You really think I could get Neptune on the ocean?” Sun joked, also dodging the question as to why his team wasn’t present. “They flew back to Mistral. I told them I’d catch up.”

He hopped up onto the railing. “Not the first time I’d left them to take a boat.”

Blake placed her hands on the railing, not quite buying Sun’s story. He tended to do whatever he wanted.

“If you’re not going after the Fang, where are you going?” He asked. 

“Home.” She responded after a moment. “To Menagerie.” 

“Well I’m coming with you!” Sun was loud. Everyone on the boat could probably hear him. “Just because you’re not going after the Fang doesn’t mean they might not come to you. Besides I’m uh, kinda already on the boat.”

Blake sighed. “There’s really no stopping you.”

There certainly never was any stopping him back at Beacon. When Sun wanted to do something he did it. She couldn’t very well send him back to Vale at this point anyways. 

“This’ll be great, I’ve never been to Menagerie before!” The boy seemingly vibrated in place. Blake didn’t say anything after that. What was there to say? Part of her wanted to push him of the boat. Part of her was secretly happy that one of her friends had come after her, even though she had no idea how Sun had followed her. Mostly she was glad it wasn’t one of her former teammates. She didn’t know how she could ever face them.

She was exhausted and wanted to sleep. Blake gave a quick goodbye to Sun and headed back to her cabin, which she casually reminded to Sun that he was not allowed into. She rested her head on her pillow, and let her muscles and mind get the rest they deserved. 

\--------

Yang woke up angry, which didn’t come as any surprise.

Despite the cool breeze of the morning air, and the sweet smell of spring tempting her nose, she was angry. Angry that for yet another day in a row she’d awoken at Raven’s campsite; quite possibly the last place on earth she wanted to be at. Zwei snored quietly beside her and her metal arm lay next to her, sitting like a rock in the dirt. 

She rose up, noticing that Raven was already awake and sitting in her now customary spot by the fire. The older woman already had her mask on and looked ready to leave, glancing over at Yang once she realized her daughter had woken up. 

“We’re leaving shortly.” She said, throwing another piece of food at Yang. Begrudgingly, Yang ate the meager meal once again, her muscles aching and craving sustenance. Raven walked off into the woods, apparently wanting Yang to walk and eat. She shrugged at Zwei and followed after her, far too tired to object at this point. 

The sun peaked out through the trees, bringing illumination to an otherwise dark forest. The three moved silently, not a word or a dog bark spoken between any of them. Yang counted her steps, trying to focus on the feeling of her feet striking earth. Her anger from the morning hadn’t quite left her yet and it took all her power not to snap and try to strike her mother. 

She hated how much her negative emotions were boiling up. Anger had always been a close friend to Yang; after Summer died, she would have bouts where she just broke things. Where she screamed at nothing and threw her fists at the wall until they bled. It was awful. It was Ruby that brought her back to reality, always. It was Ruby who gave her the strength to be a better person. Then it was her father, and then her team. 

All of those people were gone now.

Eventually, Raven came to a stop in the middle of the woods, turning to face Yang.  
“What’s the weak point of an Ursa?” She asked out of the blue. 

“What?” Yang responded, hardly present enough to deal with the question. 

“Its weak point. Where would you strike to kill?”

“I don’t know… anywhere’s fine. They die eventually.”

Raven scoffed. “I see they didn’t teach you anything at Beacon. That, or you didn’t pay any attention.”

“Whatever.” Yang didn’t fight back against the dig as much as she wanted to. Beacon was gone. She was tired of people bringing it up. 

“An Ursa’s face is well armored. You tried to strike it twice in your fight. Strength overwhelms all, but you certainly didn’t have the strength to overpower that Grimm.” 

Yang wanted to bring up that she was hardly in any position to think about strategy during that fight but she knew it’d be pointless. She missed her strength from before the Fall. Back when she could overpower almost anyone 

“You wait.” Raven began. “Wait to find weakness. Faults, cracks. Everything and everyone has one.”

She raised her hand up and clenched it shut, making a crushing gesture. Power radiated off the woman.

“That’s how you break something. It doesn’t matter how strong the enemy is; if you strike their weakness with all your strength they will fall.”

“Even you huh?” Yang gestured to Raven, trying to irritate the woman.

“Yes. Everyone.” She didn’t elaborate. “Keep up.”  
The masked woman walked further on into the woods, intending for Yang to follow after her.

\-----

_“Did you guys see Qrow in a skirt yesterday?”_

_“Hey, that’s not on me asshole!”_

_“I dunno I think he looked kind of good.”_

_“See? Maybe I’ll wear it again just to spite you Tai!”_

_Raven trailed behind her three teammates, Summer, Taiyang, and her brother Qrow, listening to the three talk about how Tai and some of his friends had tricked the her twin into wearing a skirt. Personally, Raven hadn’t really seen what was so funny about it. Clothes were a passing concern at best, and she wasn’t sure she could care less about what people wore. In the tribe people had simply worn whatever they felt like._

_“Hey c’mon Raven, you’re lagging behind!” Taiyang called out from the front of their little convoy, her team looking back at her expectantly._

_“It’s patrol work. We’re not in any hurry.” She responded, hand resting gently on the hilt of her sword. Their task was fairly straightforward; patrol the border and kill any Grimm in their path. They were to keep at it until sun down so there was no rush._

_“Yeah but you’re missing out on all my great jokes.” Tai snorted, eliciting a laugh from Summer._

_“I definitely wouldn’t call them great.” She chuckled. Summer Rose was the youngest member of their group and somehow the most mysterious, even when paired up with the Branwen twins. She was bright and cheerful, matching her namesake to a T. Her silver eyes betrayed nothing, even though Raven was certain there was far more to her than any of them realized._

_“We should ditch these losers, huh sis?” Qrow began, wrapping an arm around Raven’s shoulder._

_“So you can get wasted at another party again?” She retorted, remembering the last time she had to drag Qrow’s drunk ass back to their dorm room. “I’ll pass.”_

_“Lighten up sis. I’ll get you drunk one of these days.”_

_Raven rolled her eyes. Her brother was insufferable. She made her way closer to the center of the group, choosing to listen quietly while the other three rambled on about something._

_“What about you Raven? Favorite kind of fish go!” Taiyang pointed at her with a silly pair of finger guns. She didn’t know why, but for some reason the man was always determined in dragging her into their goofy conversations._

_“Tuna. Easily.” She shot back with a grin. She’d learned long ago there was no point in arguing with the blond hunter. He’d get her to participate one way or another._

_“Bah, Tuna’s gross.” Qrow scoffed. “I mean really all fish, you guys are freaks for liking seafood so much.”_

_“But that bar on the shore is amazing! Their fish tacos are insane.” Taiyang objected. “If that place doesn’t make you like seafood nothing will. It reminds me of the stuff we’d get back home in Mistral.”_

_The group continued debating the merits of seafood for quite a while after that. Raven found herself falling behind the group a bit again, having gotten locked in a one on one conversation with Taiyang._

_“Speaking of uh, next weekend by the way,” he began, “you wanna go check out that new weapons museum with me? Lots of cool old stuff, just like you like.”_

_“Qrow already made plans to go be an ass somewhere else next weekend. You’ll have to pick another time.”_

_“No I mean, just you and me. No Summer or Qrow.”_

_Raven was confused. They did almost everything together as a team, which frankly drove her a little insane sometimes. She’d noticed recently that Tai had been acting a little different around her; staring for a little bit too long, trying to walk closer to her as they went to class. He’d even offered to buy her a book she’d shown interest in while they were in downtown Vale._

_“Are you asking me on a date Taiyang?”_

_The young man blushed, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. “Uh, yeah, kinda? I mean, yes, definitely.”_

_Raven smirked. Taiyang certainly wore his emotions on his sleeve. “Fine.”_

_“Really?” He looked like a kid who’d just won a carnival prize._

_“Yeah, really.”_

\-----

Raven easily pushed Yang back down to the ground again, the child still unable to keep her balance against the older woman. 

“Again.” She said in monotone, looking from behind her mask as Yang pulled herself back up to her feet. 

“This is pointless!” The blond shouted. “You’re way too strong!” She looked down at her remaining arm, noting the collection of bruises and cuts that had come from multiple failed attempts to properly block her mother’s strikes. 

“You’re unbalanced. Anyone with eyes can see that. If you can’t figure it out now you’ll have an even harder time when you wear the arm.” 

Yang spat at the ground, more than a little frustrated with the situation. “I don’t want the damn arm.”

“Ironwood gave you a very powerful weapon. You’d be foolish not to use it. But you’re not ready for it yet.” The girl before her was like a child running around with a knife. Her semblance gave her immense strength, but she hadn’t yet learned to use it properly. It was frustrating. Raven wanted to return to her place in the tribe, not remain with Yang. It was painful and it made her feel weak. 

She lunged forward with a kick and Yang moved to block her strike with her left arm, making contact with the blow but remaining yet again, unable to stay on her feet. 

“Again.” Raven repeated, ignoring the whimpering from the dog on the sidelines. She’d remembered when Taiyang and Summer had gotten the dog for their children; her birds had shown her so. It was cute and the children seemed to love it, but personally she would have gotten them... well, birds. She was never a huge fan of dogs, but the choice was not hers to make. It had never been, and would never be her choice to make. 

“Give me a second.” Yang remained on the ground, taking deep breaths. 

“Do you think the enemy will ‘give you a second’?” Raven loomed over the girl like a dark effigy. She was quickly growing impatient with Yang. 

“Yeah, well they’re not here right now. So give me a second.” Yang countered, not bothering to look at Raven. She wanted to smack the girl and knock some sense into her. It had always driven Raven insane when people didn’t listen to what she had to say. To her warnings. She’d learned far too many times over that when people didn’t listen, they died. 

She held back her anger and let Yang catch her breath on the forest floor, Zwei waddling over and plopping down right next to the girl. At the very least, she was starting to see why people might appreciate having the dog around.

“The other day, you said you saw me die.” Ah. That. Raven had been hoping that wouldn’t come up again. She had misspoken, had let her emotions get the better of her in that conversation. Her inability to remain completely in control when talking to Yang was infuriating. 

“I… what were you talking about? How could you possibly have known I’d be there?” Yang continued, looking up at her. 

It was a simple answer. She had seen it. Her daughter, failing to stop one of Salem’s minions; an oddly colored girl who fought using trickery. She’d watched as Yang failed to land a single blow, unable to see how easily the other girl played her. And then she saw when the girl plunged her blade into Yang’s heart and how her blood pooled against the steel floor of the train. That had been one of Yang Xiao Long’s endings. 

Raven’s gift of foresight was a burden. Some days she wished she could take her brother’s bad luck from him if it meant losing her own semblance. She had seen so many people die; people who had no idea that a month, or a few days from now, that they would perish. When villages would be burned to the ground, regardless of whether or not her tribe attacked. Everyone who had fallen at Beacon for example. Summer. 

That had been a future too strong for even herself to change. 

It was an imperfect power. She did not control her visions or when she received them in her sleep. The visions themselves were very clear though; as if she were watching something on a scroll. Time and location were not always obvious, but the ravens made effective enough spies that she’d grown accustomed to dealing with it. 

There had been plenty of times where she had been unable to act on them though. Even with the gift of foresight, she had been unable to prevent Summer’s death. One of her greatest regrets. She had been unable to prevent her brother’s slip into the drunken mess he was today. She was unable to predict how Ozpin would ruin her life. 

Raven sighed. “My semblance gives me the occasional glimpse into the future.”

Yang’s eyes widened a bit upon hearing that, a far from surprising reaction. She and her brother both had unusual semblances that most people didn't initially believe upon learning. The Branwen curse, Qrow called it. She and her brother were burdened with a great darkness.

“I just don’t… how’s that possible?” Yang couldn’t wrap her head around it. 

“After everything that’s happened to you, that’s the most unbelievable thing?” Raven chuckled. She had watched Yang during her time at Beacon and Summer’s daughter Ruby as well, to a lesser extent. Her birds had caught her initiation, her battles with the White Fang and Salem’s minions, and her other teammates, the heiress and the faunus. Taiyang’s daughter had certainly not had a boring school life. 

Yang swallowed what appeared to be a massive lump in her throat and stared at the ground. There was something else on the girl’s mind. 

“Is that why you left dad and me?” The same question Yang had asked a few nights before fell on Raven’s ears yet again. She didn’t want to answer that question and wouldn’t. She masked woman remained silent.

“We’re not done here yet.” She finally responded. “Get up.”

“Are you ever going to tell me?” Yang snapped, eyes flashing red for an instant, reflecting the same color as her own. Raven could hardly blame the girl for her anger, but there were many, many things that were best kept in the dark. 

“Get up.”


	7. Chapter 7

_Yang checked in student after student to the dance. It was a boring task, but the school wanted to keep a headcount on how many kids were attending and Yang had offered to do it instead of Weiss. She knew the heiress wanted to try and talk to Neptune again at some point that night and probably didn’t want to waste time in front of a podium._

_Ruby had arrived not too long ago, looking absolutely adorable in her red and black dress, despite the fact that she seemed hardly able to walk in a straight line wearing her heels. Yang promised herself she’d get a picture later to send their dad; no way he could miss that shot. It was to die for. Her little sister had never seemed interested in dating anyone but Yang was sure she’d turn some heads that night._

_Yang herself only wanted to turn one head that night and it belonged to someone who hadn’t even shown up yet. It was stupid. Her talk with Blake the other day had been emotionally exhausting. She’d poured out her heart to the faunus, telling her about her own struggles in finding her birth mother and how close to disaster that had nearly brought her and Ruby. She’d told Blake to slow down, even just a little, because the sight of watching her waste herself away night after night was too much for Yang to bear. She’d brought her close to her, embracing her and hoping she wouldn’t have to let go, because she couldn’t guarantee Blake’s safety if she was so far away and distant. She’d asked her to dance with her, because she could hardly keep her emotions in check._

_Yang had come to care so much about Blake it had been agony watching the faunus destroy herself just like she had once when she was younger. She loved her partner’s drive; her dedication to fighting for a cause so steeped in justice, something so righteous and pure. Blake was so much more than the quiet, standoffish girl she’d met that first night at Beacon. She was a warrior, proud, full of fire and passion, an intelligent and beautiful young woman who could not tolerate injustice and cruelty._

_She glanced up from her schedule to see the woman of the hour, Blake Belladonna walking into the dance on Sun’s arm. It hurt a bit to them together but, damn, Blake looked great. Every curve was brought out by her dress, thin stockings covering porcelain skin and cascading black hair falling down her shoulders like moonlight over a valley. She even changed her bow that evening, trading in the standard black for a beautiful shade of blue._

_Her jaw wasn’t scraping the floor but it might has well have been. Blake let go of Sun’s arm and walked up to her, stretching out her hand to Yang._

_“I believe you saved me a dance?” The faunus winked._

_Yang smiled wide. She’d at least get a dance with Blake, her partner, her big, stupid crush.  
She took her hand and they moved onto the floor, the faunus moving so silently and lightly, like a ballerina. The last time Yang had been on the dance floor it had involved beating the ever living shit out of a group of thugs and trashing the place. _

_This was much better. Part of her felt guilty for not helping Ruby socialize, but didn’t she deserve this one moment? It may have been selfish. It may have been wrong, a human wanting a faunus, but she didn’t really care. She wanted to remember this._

_“Know how to dance Blake?” Yang asked, trying to memorize every second of the moment._

_“I think you’ll find my dancing more than satisfactory Yang.” Blake grinned, the two beginning the first steps of the song together with the other patrons. It was great. It was such a quiet moment. Everything seemed to slow down and Yang took it all in. Her partner moved through the steps expertly, as though she were a professional dancer. Yang felt sloppy in comparison. It was hard not to feel sloppy in general when next to Blake._

_“Blake,” She began, looking into her partner’s eyes. “I’m so happy you came.”_

_The faunus smiled, squeezing Yang’s hands slightly tighter. “I’m so happy you decided to talk some sense into me. You were right you know. What I was doing? It wasn’t sustainable. But I’ll be ok now, or try to be at least.”_

_Blake probably didn’t realize how much her words meant to Yang. She’d come to love taking care of people after essentially being forced to by Summer’s death. Taiyang shut down, and Ruby needed a mother, someone, to take care of her. The task fell to Yang. At first she resented it, having her childhood stolen from her. After all, everyone else took their time to grieve. Yang couldn’t afford to. It was a role she was good at though. Eventually her anger faded away to genuine love and a strong desire to protect. Even her fury towards Raven faded from a blaze to a spark. Something she could control, despite her plethora of anger issues._

_She thought she might love this person in front of her. They hadn’t known each other long, but she hadn’t met anyone like Blake before. She didn’t care that she was a faunus. They fought together so well; it was like having eyes in the back of her head. She didn’t mind when Blake sat quietly in the room, reading a book; in fact, she welcomed the silence. It was never uncomfortable. She didn’t mind when Blake rolled her eyes at her puns; in fact, the worse the joke the better. The faunus always smiled in the end._

_Yang always thought it funny when people assumed she’d had tons of exes and slept around. She liked to party and she liked to have fun, but she never found anyone that she’d cared about in that way. There were crushes at Signal, but she shot down anyone that asked. Besides, she always had Ruby to care about. She would never stop caring about Ruby, not even a bit, but her little sister could take care of herself now._

_“Blake, I uh,” Yang began, suddenly feeling a lot less confident and in control of zero of her normal bravado. Her heart was beating dangerously fast._

_“Hm?”_

_“I think I might l-” The song suddenly ended and with it any hope that Yang would spill her feelings out onto Blake. The faunus seemed a bit confused and opened her mouth to ask Yang what she was going to say when Yang gently turned Blake around to face Sun, who had started approaching the two right before the song ended._

_“Your turn Sun. You treat this fine young lady well, y’hear?” Yang said cheerfully, walking away before either of them could say anything to her. She was glad she hadn’t said anything to Blake. It was clear as day that Blake liked Sun and that Sun liked Blake. They were both faunus too. They deserved each other._

_It hurt Yang, a lot, but as long as Blake was happy that was the only really important thing. She made her way up to the balcony, not really caring about taking role anymore. Beacon would survive not having an accurate headcount. Everyone that was going to be there had already shown up anyways. Yang watched Blake from the mezzanine, smiling slightly when the faunus took a moment to look away from Sun and back at her._

_Yeah. Blake and Sun were good. She’d support Blake no matter what._

\----  
Yang was exhausted. The toll of this weird situation was wearing heavily on her mind. Her dreams and thoughts drifted more and more to Beacon, easily the happiest year of her life, inevitably bringing her pain. 

She had been shocked when Raven had told her about her semblance; it was easily the most information she’d gotten out of her mom so far. What exactly had prompted her mother to finally spill some information was beyond her. She’d all but given up any hope that she’d ever learn anything from Raven. Aside from that, the only things she’d come to know about Raven was that she was cruel, something she’d already long guessed. 

But Yang didn’t really care anymore. The whole experience of finally meeting her mother was baffling and confusing. It wasn’t anything like what she’d imagined. It was disappointing. It was painful. She wanted to go home and bury her head back under her covers. 

“I’m fighting more Grimm again today?” Yang asked, exasperated. After being humiliated in sparring matches with Raven for a whole day and then getting a day off (spent almost entirely by herself while Raven was off dust knew where), she did not want to have another encounter with an Ursa. 

“Yes.” Raven gave one of her typical one word responses, gesturing to a small group of beowulf, just four of them, in the clearing ahead. Yang remembered the first time Ruby killed a beowulf; it was actually the first Grimm she’d ever killed. Yang was so happy and Taiyang was a... weird combination of incredibly concerned and incredibly proud. 

“I don’t want to.” Yang mumbled, turning around to walk back to camp. She was done. This was all pointless. 

“Yang.” The firecracker whipped her head over to face her mother, who was shockingly, removing her mask. She looked angry. 

“I already told you.” Raven began, tone full of impatience and irritation. “You can’t hide from this anymore! You’ll die, and your sister will die too.”

“Don’t talk about her!” Yang shouted, finally starting to reach her peak tolerance for bullshit after the past few days. “You don’t know the first thing about family!”

Raven grabbed her wrist and yanked her arm, Yang hissing in pain and disgust at the touch. 

“You’ve had the luxury of living in a fairytale your whole life! The real world is cruel, and it will chew and swallow you up. The end is coming and if you want to die then go back home. I have far more important matters to attend to than you.”

Raven laughed darkly. “That faunus girl who abandoned you? She’ll die too.” 

Yang had had it. She yanked her arm out of Raven’s grasp, ignoring the sting the woman’s grip left on her wrist. There was no way she would let this person talk to her like this. Not anymore. Not about Blake. Not about her sister. She swung her arm back and sent it flying at Raven, wanting nothing more than to see her face on the ground. 

Raven easily knocked away Yang’s fist and kicked the girl in her stomach, knocking the breath of of Yang’s chest and sending her stumbling back. It hardly was enough to deter Yang though. She grit her teeth and charged again. 

This woman was evil and she deserved to be hurt.

She tried to feint Raven, sending out a fake punch and bringing her knee up to strike her.   
Raven moved quickly and blocked Yang’s attack once again, grabbing her foot and throwing the girl down onto the floor. Her red eyes were full of anger as she looked down at her daughter, like a woman scolding a child for stealing cookies. 

“I’ll kill you.” Yang spat blood onto the ground from a cut in her cheek. Her own eyes flashed red and fire burst around her as she tackled Raven. The older woman was caught off guard by the ferocity of the attack and was brought down to the ground with a grunt. Yang screamed and tried to strike Raven’s face, more disgusted than ever at the resemblance they shared. The girl’s strength was surprising, but her blind anger left her open. Raven got a hold of Yang and flipped her over, taking Yang’s place on top. She raised her fist to strike Yang, but uncurled it, standing up and leaving her daughter on the ground.

Rising up quickly, Yang moved to attack Raven once again, only to be met with the woman’s sword inches from her throat. 

“That’s enough.” Raven commanded, shockingly out of breath from Yang’s assault. Yang mentally debated the pros and cons of having an obscenely long blade shoved through her throat and backed away, trying to take deep breaths to calm herself down. It was her same reckless attitude that had caused her to lose her arm in the first place. 

She grit her teeth and tears began to fall from her eyes. Hopelessness overtook her once more. Everything was gone. She couldn’t even stop Raven. What chance did she ever have of finding Ruby or getting back home? 

Everything was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew, chapter 7! Fun dancy murder times. As always, thanks so much for reading (it really makes my day) and leave a comment if you're so inclined!


	8. Chapter 8

_Blake walked back into her dorm, tried from a long night of socializing at the dance with Sun, Neptune, and Weiss. She’d left the trio to their own devices, the three planning out on going for a drink. Sun seemed disappointed but Blake was so exhausted she thought she would fall over if she went all the way to Vale. There would be other chances to go out in the future. Now was time for rest. She was still far behind on sleep from a dangerously long period of self destruction._

_Taking her heels off, she was surprised to see that Yang had already returned, the blond sitting on her bed in her pajamas watching some dumb comedy video on her scroll._

_“Back already?” Yang asked, pausing her video and glancing at Blake. “I think everyone’s still out.”_

_Blake sighed. “The others are going to hang out a bit more but I just couldn’t do it.”  
She yawned, eyes feeling heavy. “I’m really, really tired…”_

_Yang seemed a bit concerned. “Not too bad I hope. You had fun though right? I mean when you got there you seemed alright.”_

_Sitting down on the edge of her bed beneath Yang, Blake undid the bow around her ears and started to take off the thin stockings she had on her legs. She laughed, glancing up at Yang’s bed. Their personal space heater had always been like the mom of their group. Sometimes Blake wondered if Yang ever thought about herself at all. She seemed to give all of herself to others._

_“I did. I had a lot of fun. Sun was a surprisingly good dancer and hanging out with him and Neptune was good. Even Weiss joined in a bit later. Did you know Neptune’s afraid of water?”_

_Yang snorted and leaned over her bed, long hair falling down in a mess of curls as she looked at her partner. “Good! Operation make Blake relax was a success.”_

_“Operation?”_

_“Yeah. It was all very scientific. Why do you think I used a laser pointer?”_

_“I’ll be getting back at you for that Xiao Long. Ever had a balloon rubbed against your hair?”_

_“You wouldn’t dare.” Yang laughed that bright, cheerful laugh of hers and hopped down onto the ground floor. Blake was struggling slightly to pull her gown off._

_“Need help getting out of your dress?” Yang asked._

_Blake turned on her bed and let Yang get the zipper for her. It was a bit embarrassing, especially considering how long it had taken her to put the damn thing on in the first place. She had enjoyed sprucing up for the dance, but had forgotten how annoying the clothes were once everything was said and done._

_Once finally free of the dress, she moved over to her wardrobe, grabbing her night gown from the drawer._

_“Yang?” She began, slipping into the comfort of her night gown as Yang climbed back to her bed._

_“What’s up Blake?”_

_“Thank you. For convincing me to go. I really mean it. I’d probably be passed out right now on the street if it weren’t for you.”_

_Yang was silent for a long while and Blake started to worry that she’d said something wrong. She meant it though. There was no way she could thank Yang enough._

_“Of course. What are friends for?” Finally came Yang’s response. “I’ll always be there for you Blake. Don’t forget that.”_

_Blake smiled. She didn’t know what she’d do without her crazy, caring partner. She walked over to Yang’s bunk and placed her hands on the edge._

_“What are you doing back here?” She asked, a bit concerned about how Yang was acting. “I thought you’d be swarmed with fans the whole night, but you went up to the balcony right after I started dancing with Sun. Didn’t someone ask you?”_

_The faunus found it hard to believe that no one had asked Yang Xiao Long, one of the most charismatic, beautiful girls at Beacon to the dance. She knew Yang had sort of asked her back in the classroom, but she thought she was just being her usual flirty self._

_“Eh, I had some people ask me. Didn’t really want to go with any of them.” Yang responded, glancing back from her scroll at Blake._

_“Besides, I got to dance with the prettiest girl at Beacon. Pretty good deal if I say so myself.”  
She shot a flirty little wink at Blake. The faunus sighed and rolled her eyes. Yang was certainly something else. Blake hardly thought she was the prettiest girl at Beacon. _

_Her partner paused for a moment after that however, betraying a rare flash of sadness in her eyes before bringing back her bright and cheerful face. “Sun’s a lucky guy Blake. Don’t sell yourself short ok?”_

_Blake chuckled. “We’re hardly going out Yang. I don’t really think I have time for dating.”_

_“But you like him right?” Yang probed, raising an eyebrow at the Faunus._

_“I guess so.” Blake responded, tucking a bit of hair behind her ear. “He’s stupid but he makes me laugh and he’s cute. I don’t know if I like him like that though. Maybe someday, when everything slows down a bit more.”_

_Yang gave a thumbs up. “Well if you ever decide you’re interested, I’ve been told I make a great wingman.”_

_“I’m sure you do Yang.”_

_“Hey I mean it partner.”_

_Blake rolled her eyes and went back to her bed, pulling out the book she’d been reading from the corner. It was one of her trashy romance novels that the others teased her about sometimes. She was very aware of how bad they were, but it was a guilty pleasure she couldn’t help but indulge in. After all the craziness that had plagued her, sitting down to thumb through the poorly written pages was all she wanted._

_“Oh, Yang, one more thing.”_

_“Yep?”_

_“At the dance, you were about to say something before you left. Was it important?”_

_Blake received another silence that was slightly too long to be comfortable. Yang was a little off tonight._

_“No. It was nothing, no worries. Here, let me grab my headphones, so you can read in peace.”_

_Blake watched as the blond effortlessly hopped off to grab her headphones. She was usually surprisingly respectful and quiet when Blake just wanted to read. The faunus enjoyed reading alone, but she didn’t mind it when Yang was around. Her partner always made her feel more comfortable._

\------

Blake breathed in the familiar scent of her hometown, taking in the heavily spiced smells of Kuo Kuana. There was a brand of green tea she used to get in the open market that she’d kill for right now, a fragrant, earthy blend that never failed to re energize. The tea in Vale had been good, sometimes great, but there was no replacement for her childhood favorite. 

The sand and rocks felt good under her heels. She remembered running around in it and playing tag with one of her old friends, Illia. The girl had been a chameleon faunus, which made catching the her borderline impossible sometimes. 

Once when she was younger she Blake and scraped her leg and her father had carried her on his shoulders all the way to the doctor’s hut, a modestly sized abode that she could see from the spot she was in now. She wondered if the doctor was still the same old woman. 

Sun seemed surprised by the whole place, acting like a child that was at the amusement park for the first time. 

“I’ve never seen so many faunus in one place!” Sun said, appearing to be attempting to count all of them on his fingers. 

“This is the one place everyone can feel safe, regardless of who they are.” She said it with a bit of sadness in her voice. It was great that the faunus felt safe here, but it was just another way for the humans to push them away. Out of sight, out of mind. 

“Bit cramped here huh?”

“That tends to happen when two thirds of the island is desert.”

Sun scoffed. “A little desert never hurt anyone!” 

Blake rolled her eyes, something she knew she would be doing a lot of soon. “It’s not like Vacuo Sun. The desert here is dangerous.”

“So they gave us a terrible island in the corner of Remnant to get rid of us?”

“Pretty much.” Blake sighed. They continued walking through the town, Sun seemingly unable to get over how crowded everything was. Reaching the top of the hill, they arrived at one of Blake’s favorite places. She could literally see her house from there, as well as the rest of the city. It was a beautiful sight. 

“Welcome to my home town. Kuo Kuana.” She said in response to a dumbfounded Sun, taking a small amount pride in being able to show off her home to someone. 

“It’s beautiful. I take it all back this place looks great! Why would anyone want to leave?” Sun jumped around with the energy of a toddler.

Sometimes his lack of understanding left Blake completely baffled. He never assumed things could be bad at times.

“That’s not the point Sun! We wanted to be equal and instead were given an island and told to make do. We came together and made a home where faunus are safe. But this island will always be a reminder that we’re not equal. We’re second class citizens.”

Sun slung his arm around her and she flinched slightly at the touch, looking at his face and mentally reminder herself that she was safe around him. He wasn’t Adam.

“Well, this guy feels pretty comfortable.” 

Blake sighed, glancing back at her home in the distance. She certainly didn’t feel as comfortable as she should. The closer she got to home, the closer the realization came that she would have to face her parents after months of being estranged.

“Time to go home.” She said somewhat sadly. 

“Yeah, which one’s yours?” He asked, continuing to be a little too handsy for her taste.

“It’s that one.” She said, removing his arm and using it to point at her home. 

His typical goofiness returned and he was shocked to see that Blake’s home was the biggest in the city. She’d never told anyone that her parents ran Menagerie, or that she even had parents at all. She was often far too busy trying to hide the fact she was a faunus in the first place.

She chuckled and started down the path towards her house, Sun continuing to make silly noises as he followed after her. 

\----

Yang finally stopped crying after sobbing for a few minutes. She was drained. Emotionally and physically. Zwei had left the camp at some point, using his sniffer to find the two women when they took too long to return. She scratched the dog behind his ears as was her custom, trying to focus on his fluffy fur instead of her crumbling mind. 

Raven stood there silent the whole time, watching as Yang tried to pull herself back together.  
She sat down in the forest, Zwei snuggling in her lap and trying to lick her face.

“Hey, that’s gross Zwei.” Yang spoke to her furry friend, voice hoarse from crying. “Little weirdo.”

Yang felt Raven’s gaze on her but ignored her. She didn’t know where she was supposed to go from here and didn’t care.

“You’ve got quite a bit of raw strength.” Raven finally said, gently touching a bruise that had formed after Yang tackled her. 

Yang glanced up at her but said nothing. What was there to say?

“... I’m sorry.” Raven’s voice was quiet.

Yang’s eyes locked on Raven, as did Zwei’s. The little dog buried his head in Yang’s lap, as though he didn’t want anything to do with the approaching conversation. 

“No you’re not.” Yang said, staring Raven down. 

“Let me finish.” Raven hissed back, having just as short a temper as Yang did. She sighed and pushed her hair out of her face, taking a spot on the ground a few meters away from Yang. 

“You want to find your sister right? Maybe even your team. I’m trying to help you. And… I know it doesn’t seem like it.”

It always made Yang a bit uncomfortable when Raven was candid like this. She hated it because it made Raven seem like something more than a monster. Nothing was ever so simple. 

“You are strong. You just need to be pushed forward.” 

“What would you know about how I feel right now?” Yang focused on the dirt. “I lost… everything. It’s all gone.”

“Is your sister gone?” Raven shot back, narrowing her eyes at her biological daughter. “She’s waiting for you. Do you not want to regain your strength? You can still fight. Stop telling yourself you can’t.”

The woman sighed. “If you truly want to remain in Patch the rest of your days waiting for the world to end you can.”

Yang looked down at Zwei, who still seemed terrified of Raven. His beady little eyes lifted her spirits just a bit, but it didn’t take her back to safety or comfort. She didn’t know what to do. Before her mom showed up she had no desire to ever fight again. No desire to go after her sister, and Weiss and Blake were lost causes.

She had beaten that Grimm the other day and she’d even driven Raven back temporarily. Was there still a chance she could still be a huntress? Still be Yang? Of course she wanted to protect her dear little sister Ruby. Of course she wanted revenge on the bastard who did this to her. But coming back from the brink was no easy task. She’d never be the same.

“I’m not the who I was though. I’m broken.” Yang said, raising her stump, Zwei tracking the appendage and whimpering. 

“Didn’t you just prove to yourself to day you can fight, arm or not? It’s hardly the thing that makes you strong.” Raven scoffed, having a bit of trouble remaining kind. “Irondic-, Ironwood gave you a great tool as well. I recommend you use it.”

Yang couldn’t help but snort. She could never ignore a stupid joke. “Irondick? What?”

Raven smirked evilly. “It’s what we called him at Beacon. Don’t worry about it.”

There it was again. Little bits and pieces of humanity slithering out of Raven’s shell. It bothered Yang more than if she was just some evil cut out, because it made her even more desperate to know why she left. Monsters abandoned kids. People didn’t. 

Raven dropped her smile and frowned, letting her gaze drift away from Yang.  
“Do you really think I don’t know what it’s like?” 

She gripped the hand of her sword tightly. “Leaving you and Tai behind was one of the hardest things I ever had to do.”

“Then why the hell did you leave?” Yang’s anger quickly returned. Zwei stuck his head back in her lap, now just as terrified of her. “I’m sick of you not answering me. You know what? I’ll fucking walk back to Patch through the damn ocean if you don’t tell me right now.”

Raven was quiet for a moment, lost in thought, opening her mouth several times to begin before shutting it just as quickly. She paused, and looked at Yang, actually looked at her.  
“I was afraid I would ruin you.”

Yang stared at her mother, not even remotely sure what emotion to be feeling. Raven was honest. She couldn’t get any sense that the woman was lying. Apparently that was the real reason: she didn’t want to ‘ruin’ her daughter. If she even still felt like she ever had a daughter. 

Part of her wanted to be sympathetic. Yang didn’t know much about team STRQ or the troubles they faced. Part of her didn’t care at all. What kind of terrible excuse was that? You weren’t supposed to abandon anyone you care about for any reason.

Period. 

“I’ll stay and fight.” Yang said, cutting Raven off before she could continue any more. Whatever she said, Yang didn’t want to hear it. She wanted to get through this dumb training and then never see Raven again. Her mother wouldn’t get the better of her. She would rise.  
\-----  
_  
“Yaaaang, it’s too hot in here! Go outside.” Ruby’s high pitched whine rang out in the room, the three of them (Yang seemed fine), all fanning themselves by the window, trying desperately to beat an unseasonal heat wave at Beacon._

_“I’ve been betrayed by my own sister?” Yang faked injury. “Just kill me now sis.”_

_The AC in the building was blasting, but it didn’t seem to have any effect. No one wanted to go outside, seeing as it was even worse out there._

_“Hang on,” Weiss began, grabbing Myrtenaster off her bed. “I have an idea.”_

_She spun around in a flashy way and a block of ice arose in the center of the room in a blast of dust._

_“Oh thank gods.” Blake immediately crawled up into the block of ice, sprawling out over it like a house cat. Ruby and Weiss made their way to the ice as well, the two of them both shoving their foreheads against the ice._

_“Oh this is the best.” Ruby mumbled. “I’m in heaven. Weiss I promise you a bunch of cookies…”_

_“Keep your cookies to yourself.” Weiss responded sluggishly, “I’m never moving from this spot.”_

_“Pfft. Bunch of babies.” Yang chuckled, standing around her teammates and their precious block of ice. “Maybe I’ll go down and make a piping hot cup of coffee.”_

_“Don’t even talk about that right now.” Blake tried picking her head up off the ice to obnoxiously roll her eyes, but found herself trapped by the comfort of the block. She wanted to live on it forever._

_Yang headed to the door, starting to leave before Ruby called out to her.  
“Yang I didn’t mean it! You don’t have to go if you don’t want to!” She outstretched her hand dramatically, reaching for her dear sister. _

_“I’m not leaving, I’m gonna try and scrounge up some more towels.” Yang shrugged, looking at her three teammates in amusement. They acted like they’d never been lit on fire before or something._

_“When that thing finally melts I don’t want a swimming pool in the dorm. Though upon second thought that actually sounds pretty nice…”_

_The other three groaned. Yang was right. The relief was temporary and they’d have quite a mess on their hands fairly soon._

_“C’mon guys, let’s go help her…” Ruby mumbled, trying very hard to pry herself off the ice. “... I think I’m stuck.”_

\----  
It’d been an unbelievably stressful day for Blake, yet also one full of joy as well. Her heart had been filled with terror as they approached her home. The mighty doors of the Belladonna household loomed over her like giant monoliths and it took a lot of courage to finally strike the door in greeting. It seemed like an eternity, waiting for the door to open and seeing her mother’s small figure peeking out through the crack. Kali Belladonna was a very small woman; very small. She resembled Blake deeply and shared their cat ears, as well as their striking eyes.

“Blake?” Her voice had been so quiet, so full of surprise and awe. The way her eyes looked at Blake pushed away Blake’s initial fears. Kali embraced her and Blake gladly reciprocated. She had missed her mother so much; she was an amazing woman who had given so much of herself to her daughter. There was no way Blake could ever make reparations. 

It was then that her mountain of a father had arrived. Ghira Belladonna was colossal; a man built out of hardship and iron. He was one of the wisest people she’d ever had the pleasure of knowing and she’d nearly completely destroyed their relationship by running away. She remembered the night it happened. 

“You’re a coward!” Blake had screamed at the top of her lungs. Her father and mother had looked so surprised. How could their daughter be acting in such a way? They must have thought she’d been completely brainwashed by Adam and Khan. And they were right. The two men had convinced her that the only way forward was through violence, but her father had tried to warn her that their tactics would only hurt them. 

He’d been right about that too.

And yet he looked at her so warmly and sweetly when she arrived, eyes full of love and concern, just the same as they had been when she was younger. Her own eyes filled with tears at the sight. Sun smiled warmly and let her have this moment with her parents. The three of them fell into an embrace, a beautiful, quiet moment. Blake wanted it to never end.  
Nothing so perfect could last though. Eventually the peace broke and awkwardness set in. In the silence, Blake didn’t have to explain herself as to why she left and why she returned. Her parents would have a litany of questions however; she hadn’t been in contact with them since she sent them a letter stating she had been accepted to Beacon and had been assigned a team. Radio silence after that. 

They’d sat around the table and Blake couldn’t tell if she needed to push Sun into the ocean or thank him for distracting her parents from asking her about what happened. He’d certainly put his foot in his mouth, effectively earning him a spot on her father’s shit list; another thing she’d have to take care of later.

Then they had showed up. The White Fang. 

Blake had to stop herself from attacking the Corsac brothers on sight. They were liars; nothing they could say would convince her otherwise. She needed to tell her father to stop associating with them altogether. The White Fang would only bring trouble. 

The whole affair had made her terrified. It was unlikely Adam was on Menagerie but what if? What if they told him and they came after her? Her visit home had been cut short before it had even started. If she even saw the first sign of danger she would leave. She couldn’t possibly put her parents in harm's’ way. Sun would probably be fine on his own; he was a bit of a dunce, but he could make his way back to Mistral once she left. 

She headed up the stairs to her room. Her muscles ached and she just wanted to go to sleep and try to recharge.  
“Blake?” Her mother’s voice called out, a note of utter sweetness.

“What is it mom?” Blake asked, turning to face her mother. She didn’t know how much energy she had to dedicate to a conversation, as much as she loved her mother. Her brain was on its way to shutting down.

“Honey, I know it will be difficult to open up to us. Especially your father.” Her mother began, wrapping Blake into another hug. “But I want you to know that you coming back? It’s the only thing we have ever wished for.” 

Blake let out a sniffle and pulled her mom in tightly. Her parents were so kind. How could they be so willing to forgive her? She thought briefly about her team. About the person she had abandoned. They could never forgive her like this.

“I love you mom.” Blake whimpered, holding onto her mother like it was the last time she’d see her.

“We will always love you. More than anything.” Kira responded. They stayed like that for a moment, before her mother finally wished her a good night and left her to her devices.

Blake was finally able to retire to her room for the evening, her parents returning to theirs and Sun sleeping in a guest bedroom. The peace and silence felt amazing, especially considering how wild the past two days had been. 

She threw herself down on her bed, letting the soft fabric catch her and caress her skin. This is not what she came here to do. She came home to escape, to rest and lick her wounds. Everything else could come after that. Rolling over to the edge of the bed, she struck a match and lit the candle that sat on her bedside stand. Fragrance filled the room and helped ease her nerves. Her room was almost exactly as she left it; she was surprised that her parents had bothered to clean it.

Her eyes traced the patterns in the wood of the ceiling, little flickering lights dancing across the rafters. It was a soothing sight and her bed felt absolutely amazing. After the Fall of Beacon she hadn’t exactly had reasonable accommodations; her home becoming whatever makeshift shelter she could scrounge for the night. The boat had had a cot for her to rest on, but it hadn’t been much better than sleeping on the floor. This, her massive cozy bed from her childhood, felt truly amazing. 

It made her feel like she was back at Beacon, peacefully resting with her teammates. Ruby would always snore softly, and she never had to use too many sheets due to Yang’s space heater like qualities. Weiss would stay up late into the night studying but never made so much as a peep, writing deftly with ink and pen in complete silence. 

She pushed the thoughts from her mind and forced herself to think more of home, of her childhood memories. During thunderstorms, she would crawl into her parents’ bed, finding safety between her mountain of a father and her much smaller mother. It was hard to be scared of anything when Ghira Belladonna was present. They’d tell her myths about the thunder and lightning, explaining outlandish tales of how the old gods crafted the storms and she used to believe them.

Her childhood was a far simpler time. 

A shiver crawled through her spine as she changed into some leftover night gowns from before she left. It could get quite cold in Menagerie at night, due to the nature of the desert climate, and the large window in her room didn’t help. Glass still let in the cold after all.  
“Hey, Yang can you-” 

What a stupid thing she had done. Silence was her only companion and the room just seemed even colder. She’d never see Yang again. Or Ruby. Or Weiss. Over and over again she told herself she made the right choice. Her being with them would only hurt them even more than she already had. 

She was bad. Walking back over to her bed, she buried herself in her covers and cried.

\----  
_  
“No!” Blake yelled, awaking with a start from a particularly cruel nightmare. Adam had found her and he hurt her. Badly. Sweat raced down her forehead and her chest pounded with every breath, body still panicking as though her dream had really happened._

_She wrapped her arms around herself and tried to pull her covers up to her face. He hadn’t actually hurt her. She still had all her limbs and wasn’t lying in a pool of her own blood. She was fine. She was safe._

_“Blake what’s wrong?” Ruby’s quiet voice called out.  
She turned to look at the three people who had gathered on the base of her bed, each of them looking at her with deep concern. Ruby’s hair was ruffled and her night mask was pulled up. Weiss was standing, arms crossed but empathy coloring her face. Yang was crouched next to Ruby, lilac eyes filled with sadness. _

_“... nothing, just a dream. You can all go back to bed.” Blake responded, looking away from them in shame. She felt embarrassed. This wasn’t the first time she’d interrupted everyone’s sleep._

_“Are you sure?” Ruby asked meekly._

_“... it’s ok if you’re not ok.” Weiss added, unraveling her arms._

_Yang was surprisingly quiet, looking lost in her own thoughts._

_“I’m sure. It’s fine.” Blake let out a shaky breath. She wasn’t fine, not really, but she didn’t want to burden her teammates. They were too kind for their own good._

_“Hey, why don’t we go down and make you some of that herbal tea you like?” Yang finally said, standing up and offering a hand to Blake. They had to use the kitchen kettle ever since Ruby accidentally broke theirs in a curious science experiment. It had seemed like a good idea at the time, she’d said in defense._

_“Good idea.” Weiss nodded. Ruby grinned from ear to ear in agreement. They were all up already and their faces seemed to say, why not?  
Blake paused for a moment before taking Yang’s hand, not wanting to leave the safety of her covers. It felt childish, but being wrapped up in the warmth made her feel better. _

_“I uh…” Blake stammared. Yang gave her hand a squeeze._

_“We can get it and bring it back.” She noted how warm Yang’s hand was. Blake nodded at the suggestion, looking at her team meekly._

_“No problem Blake!” Ruby said a little too loudly, eliciting a bop on the head from Weiss. It was the middle of the night and none of them were prepared for their leader’s pep.  
Ruby and Weiss left first, as had become their team custom (Ruby insisted one day that they leave in team order, claiming that it made them ‘look cooler’). Yang let go of Blake’s hand and turned to leave as well, before the faunus grabbed her wrist. _

_“... can you stay?” Blake asked in a quiet voice. Yang looked back at Ruby and Weiss for approval, before crouching back down to Blake’s bedside. Her other teammates gave the blond a thumbs up before leaving to go downstairs. Yang laced her hand with Blake’s again and they were quiet. She always liked their silences. Her partner made her feel safe. Yang seemed like she was invincible; there was never any task she wouldn’t take on, and yet her kindness ran just as deep as her courage._

_“... I’m sorry.” Blake mumbled. She was mortified._

_“You know, you apologize too much.” Yang smiled, running her thumb against the back of Blake’s palm in a rhythmic pattern. It felt nice._

_“I’ve gotta ‘hand’ it to you though Blake,” Yang squeezed her hand for comedic weight. “You make a good alarm clock.”_

_Blake chuckled. Yang’s jokes were awful, cringe worthy most of the time, but more and more she found herself just flat out laughing at them. She wasn’t sure why. With a sigh she brought her head to her knees, still holding onto Yang’s hand like a lifeline._

_“Do you have nightmares Yang?” Blake asked, her ribbon preventing her ears from pushing down onto her head._

_“Definitely. I don’t think there’s a single person out there who hasn’t had one.” She grasped Blake’s hand with both of hers. “I bet yours are really bad sometimes.”  
That was putting it lightly, Blake thought. _

_“But no matter how many times you have them we’ll be here for you.” Yang looked right into her eyes. The blond had a surprisingly piercing gaze. “Every single night if we have to. Sleep’s overrated anyways.”_

_She laughed again. “Says the girl who slept in till 3pm last weekend.”_

_“Well, then that’s how much I care.” Yang responded. “I’ll stay up all night with you if it helps.”_

_Blake blushed. She’d done terrible things in her past and deserved to be haunted by them. Certainly, she didn’t deserve the care Yang and the others offered her. Her team was made up of truly kind humans. Truly kind people.Yang winked at her. “I mean who wouldn’t want to stay up with such a cool cat?”_

_“Ugh.” Blake rolled her eyes. Yang only made cat jokes when it was just the two of them, but they were just as cringe worthy as her regular ones. She moved over slightly, shifting her body closer to the wall and letting go of Yang’s hand._

_The blond looked surprised, opening her mouth to ask what was wrong before Blake gestured for her to get up on her bed. She felt safe with Yang nearby and wanted her partner closer._

_“Are you sure? I know you don’t like being touched all the time and stuff-” Yang asked, before getting cut off by Blake._

_“You’re warm and it feels nice.” Blake felt her face heating up again. What a dumb thing to say._

_“Yeah, I’m pretty hot.” Yang joked, getting yet another eye roll from her partner as she crawled onto Blake’s bed slowly. She didn’t move Blake’s covers and remained on top, nudging next to Blake’s body. The faunus remained bundled up, resting her head against Yang’s shoulder._

_She was right. Yang made her bed a lot cozier.  
_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh man 8 chapters. Blake's story will start to diverge from canon at this point (if you could't tell by my laziness in not wanting to copy the script in the end there lol). Also enjoy that shameless fluffy crap. As always, thanks so much for reading!


	9. Chapter 9

_“Blake you look great, you’re gonna knock ‘im dead! That’s a Xiao Long Guarantee!”_

_Yang watched as Blake continued to fidget with her bow in the mirror, giving herself a funny look. She’d spent the better part of the day trying to assure Blake that her date would go fine and even spent the past few hours helping her spruce up her makeup and outfit. After all, Yang knew how to make anyone’s jaw drop._

_“Thanks Yang.” Blake said warmly, turning away from the mirror to face her partner. “I didn’t think I’d get so nervous over something so stupid.”_

_“It’s not stupid Blake. Being nervous about a date is natural.” Yang smiled, putting a hand on Blake’s shoulder. Ruby and Weiss had already left earlier, Weiss rambling on about teaching Ruby the ‘proper way to consume horderves’ and basically dragged her sister kicking and screaming out of the dorm, leaving Blake and Yang alone. Ruby would be fine. Probably._

_Yang was struggling a bit. She wanted Blake to be happy and knew that she would have fun on her date with Sun, but her stomach had been doing cartwheels since earlier in the morning. Jealousy wasn’t an emotion she was exempt from, but she’d be damned if she let it get in the way of Blake’s happiness. She’d seen plenty of times at Signal what happened when people tried to butt into other peoples’ relationships. It was selfish and it always hurt everyone involved. Yang would rather die than hurt any of her friends; especially Blake._

_“Blake look, if Sun doesn’t think you’re the most beautiful, talented girl at Beacon then he can go jump in a garbage truck.”_

_“He probably has at some point, knowing him.” Blake chuckled, blushing slightly at the compliment._

_Yang forced herself to smile once more. She didn’t dislike Sun at all and enjoyed hanging out with the monkey faunus as much as anyone else, but she kind of did want him to jump in a garbage truck sometimes._

_“C’mon now.” Yang said, grabbing Blake by the wrist and pulling her out the door. Bumblebee’s fast but you’ll still be late if we don’t go now.”_

_The two of them made their way down to where Yang kept her bike, each of them putting on a helmet as the vehicle roared to life. Safety first after all. She sped down the highway, taking in the guilty pleasure of having Blake’s arms wrapped around her. It was the weekend in Vale and plenty of people were out and about having fun. Yang herself planned on going out to grab a drink somewhere while she waited for Blake to finish up her date with Sun. She’d get something virgin, not wanting to risk being impaired when driving Blake home._

_“Here we are!” Yang said triumphantly, pulling her motorcycle in front of the restaurant. She turned and helped Blake off the bike, giving the girl a quick hug._

_“It’s gonna go great ok?” Blake was clearly a bit nervous. “Call me when you’re done.”_

_Blake nodded and hugged Yang back. “Thanks Yang. I really couldn’t ask for a better friend.”_

_Friend. Right. “Aw, you’re making me blush.”_

_She watched from the street as Blake walked into the restaurant, seeing her meeting with Sun through the window. They looked happy. Yang hopped back onto Bumblebee, making sure she strapped Blake’s helmet onto the back for later and headed for the bar. She considered going to Junior’s place, but she didn’t really want to have to shoot up the place again._

_Yang sat on the stool of bar on settled on the coast. It had a really nice view of the ocean and she always enjoyed being able to watch the waves roll back and forth. The sea was nothing if not relaxing._

_She sipped her Strawberry Sunrise, trying to relax and take her mind off things. It still tasted damn good without the alcohol. There were plenty of things she needed to think about other than acting like a jealous high schooler. A test was coming up in Port’s class and neither she or Ruby had done particularly well on the last one. They kind of deserved it for passing doodles back and forth most of the time. Grades weren’t the most important thing at Beacon, but Yang had vowed to do better on the next one. She had to set a good example for her sister after all._

_She pulled out her scroll and was flipping through a few different apps when the call alert pulsed on the screen._

_“Y’ello?” Yang said, pulling the scroll up to her ear. The caller ID had said it was Blake, but it was still another hour or two before their date was supposed to be done._

_“Hey… Yang can you come get me?” Blake began, her voice sounding a little shaky on the phone._

_“Yeah of course.” Yang immediately hopped off her barstool and threw some money on the counter, not bothering to finish her drink as she rushed over to her motorcycle._

_“I’m sorry Yang, I know it’s not when I told you to come earlier.”_

_“Blake don’t worry about it ok? I’m on my way.”_

_The bike’s engine roared to life and Yang blasted her way down the streets, going over the speed limit by a large margin as she headed to her partner. She came to a screeching halt in front of the restaurant, right in front of a despondent looking Blake. The faunus wasn’t crying, but her makeup had started to run a little bit, indicating the degree to which she was upset._

_“Hop on.” Yang said, handing Blake her helmet. She’d get them back to the dorm and then they could talk about it. Blake just simply nodded and mounted the bike, wrapping her arms around Yang’s waist._

_When they got back to the dorm Yang led Blake over to her bed, thankful that Ruby and Weiss were still out. Her partner gladly sat down on the bed, Yang taking a spot beside her, not sitting too close or too far from the faunus. The girl sniffled and finally let a few tears run down her face._

_“Sorry…” She mumbled, brushing the tears off her cheeks._

_“What are you apologizing for?” Yang chuckled, gently resting her hand on Blake’s shoulder. “What happened Blake? We don’t have to talk about it now if you don’t want to.”_

_She took a deep breath and looked over at Yang. The blond thought Blake’s amber eyes looked a lot better when she was smiling and happy. Whatever happened, she mentally made a note to stick gum on Sun’s hair or something equally petty._

_“It was Sun he… he kept trying to get me to take my bow off.” Blake sighed, gently touching the ribbon that lay on top of her head._

_“He told me I looked so much better without it, but I’m not there yet. I don’t want to take it off in public. So I kept telling him no, and then we started arguing about faunus rights and it just… went downhill from there. I acted like an idiot.”_

_Yang stayed quiet and let Blake finished. She found it hard to believe that things had gone south so fast, but Blake was very passionate when it came to faunus rights and was very protective of her ears._

_“I just… I don’t know how he can be so ignorant about some things. He’s a faunus too, he should know better.” She gave herself a hug. “Not everyone had the luxury of growing up as happy as he did. He doesn’t… really get it. I know he’s trying but it’s just so frustrating sometimes.”_

_She padded her face again, struggling to keep her cheeks dry. “You probably think it’s dumb. That I’m too sensitive.”_

_Yang frowned. Blake was far from too sensitive. She was incredibly strong, filled with an admirable sense of justice. Yang envied her; the only thing she’d ever let get the better of her like that was her search for Raven. Blake’s passion was far more altruistic. It had taken a while for Yang to let things go, and focus on the real things that mattered, like her sister. Blake had always focused on the important things._

_“That’s not true at all.” Yang grabbed Blake’s hand tightly, looking her partner dead in the eyes.  
“Blake you’re amazing. And I really mean it. You’re so strong… and so courageous. You’re not too sensitive. Far from it. It’s your big heart that makes you so great.”_

_She smiled, taking in every part of the woman she’d fallen for. “I wish I was half as strong as you. You put every ounce of your being into standing up for the weak. It’s really, really, amazing.”_

_Blake sniffed and a smile crept across her face. “You really know how to make a girl feel special Yang Xiao Long.”_

_She leaned in and wrapped her arms around Yang, pulling the blond against her body tightly.  
Yang squeezed Blake against her, stroking her head gently. _

_“Can we stay like this? For a little while?” Blake asked, burying her head in Yang’s shoulder. She wanted to kiss her so bad. Kiss her and tell her that she would never hurt her like Sun had. That she’d always be there._

_“Of course.” Yang responded. Anything for Blake._

\----

Yang was throwing a stick around for Zwei to grab; the pup’s favorite game had always been catch. Raven was… somewhere, but had expressed interest in having Yang finally put her robo arm today. Naturally, Yang was incredibly anxious about the whole situation. She’d told Raven she would follow through with her weird and brutal training, and that they would both split ways afterward. The end of their estranged relationship couldn’t come soon enough.

Zwei scurried back up to her, holding a large stick in his mouth and looking at Yang expectantly. She scratched him behind the ears, pulling the stick out of his mouth and giving it another toss. As he rushed after his toy, she glanced over at the arm she’d received from Ironwood. It’d been sitting in camp the past few days, serving as little more than a glorified paper weight. 

She walked over to metallic limb and picked it up. It’d always been lighter than she expected, not feeling like a huge weight, but the metal felt firm and strong. Yang didn’t know a lot about prosthetics, but it was clear to anyone that this was an impressive piece of technology. 

“Are you going to put it on?” Raven’s voice called out from behind her, the woman emerging from one of her disturbing looking portals. She’d confirmed to Yang that wasn’t her semblance; Yang reminded herself to try and grill her on that later. 

“I guess.” Yang mumbled halfheartedly. From what she’d gotten from her dad, ‘installing’ the arm wasn’t supposed to be difficult. It would fit and plug in snugly to the piece of metal that covered the base of her stump now. Apparently it would hurt quite a bit the first time though. Something about the nature of connecting to the nerves. Afterward, it was supposed to be a much simpler process. 

“The hardest part of anything is the beginning.” Raven sat down by the fire, taking her mask off. Yang knew she was right, though she hated to admit the woman had any sage advice. She’d made a decision to get stronger and go after Ruby. There was no turning back now. Zwei returned, dropping the stick when he realized what was going on. He gave Yang a bark of what she assumed to be encouragement.

She swallowed and choked back her fear. Yang placed the arm into position and gave it a shove. Pain blotted out all her thoughts for a moment. The firecracker was hardly a stranger to pain, her semblance relying on getting hit in the first place, but this hurt far more than she anticipated. It felt like red hot needles being laced all the way up her arm. She fell over onto her knees and puked, letting out a cry of pain and grabbing the dirt fiercely with her left arm. 

Raven walked over to her, hesitating at first, but placing her hang on Yang’s shoulder in a show of support. Luckily for Yang, the blinding pain didn’t last long. She took deep, long breaths, focusing on letting her muscle spasms pass. Raven nodded at her and stood up, holding out her hand to her daughter. Yang took her hand with her brand new right arm, trying the appendage out for the first time. It shocked her how well it worked. Of course it didn’t feel like a real arm, but all she had to do was act like it was real and her brain responded. Her father had told her as much. 

“Alright then.” Raven said, crooked smirk on her face. “It’s time for the next step.”

\-----

Sun and Blake had decided to part ways for the day. He wanted to explore the market more and she wanted to traverse the woods, exploring old haunts from her childhood. She hadn’t been able to muster up the courage to tell her parents the full story yet, or to try and make peace with her father. And yet somehow, they had still been nothing but kind to her. It was baffling. 

The old roads in the woods just outside of Kuo Kuana were cracked and full of broken stones. Fallen branches and the feathers of tropical birds covered the path in a blanket of decay and color. Life and death. It’d always been that way. There was never quite enough money in the coffers of Menagerie to fix some of the old infrastructure. 

Blake didn’t let it bother her much. It was as she remembered it from her past and it provided her with a certain sense of comfort. She and many other children had played hide and seek in these woods, or pretended to hunt Grimm and play huntress. 

She sighed and sat down on a large petrified stump, the same stump she’d played on many times before, and pulled out a small lunch her mother had packed for her. It was an absolutely delicious looking sushi roll, crafted expertly out of rice, seaweed, and Blake’s personal favorite; tuna, freshly caught off the coast of Menagerie. Not drooling was an impossibility. 

The fish at Beacon had always been disappointing, but when the team made it out to the coastline, Blake found herself in heaven. Seafood was always better by the coast. There was a bar Yang always brought them to that had amazing fish tacos. Greasy, slathered in sauce, and full of the flavor of the sea. They were one of Blake’s favorite things about Vale. 

When she’d been traversing the ruins of Beacon and the smoldering remains of the city, she’d found her way to that little bar one night. It’d been completely burned out, black embers and ash redecorating the once cozy inside. There were a few corpses there as well, evidence of a brutal White Fang or Grimm attack, possibly both.

She ate her food in silence, trying to let the sounds of the forest calm her mind and distract her. Everytime she tried to think about things she found her thoughts drifting back to Beacon and her eyes starting to tear up. How was she ever going to come back from what happened? Everything was gone. Everything. 

At the very least, it felt good not covering up her ears. She had gotten used to the bow, but never quite forgot how much freer she felt when the ribbon was gone. Sounds were less muffled and being able to allow the appendages to move around naturally was a great boon. 

Once again, she found her thoughts drifting back to her team. How was Yang doing now? Had she gotten a prosthetic? They were common in Remnant now, though there was quite the spectrum of quality depending on the model. Yang deserved the very best. Her partner had been with her through her absolute worst points and Beacon, never expecting anything in return, and all Blake had done was used her and abandoned her. Yang was her greatest regret.

Ruby was probably off saving the world again. The young girl had a determination to protect the world that few people had. She hoped Weiss was with her, but she had no idea. After she ran from her friends, she didn’t check back on how everyone was. The two were a great pair though. It’d be a shame if Ruby was fighting out there without her partner. 

She wanted them back more than anything. She had let them in and let them become closer than anyone ever had. They saw her demons and saw past them, never defining her by her past or her heritage. They struggled with her in her fight, helping her investigate the White Fang and standing up for faunus at school, putting bullies like Cardin in their place. Never had she met a group of women so unique, so powerful, and so full of love. Blake found herself crying again, tears falling down onto the stump and her meal. 

\----

_“So then Ruby looked our father dead in the eye and said, “Fuck!” at the top of her lungs. It was freakin’ hilarious, she seemed so proud of herself.” Yang snorted, gleefully lost in a memory._

_“After that we weren’t allowed to watch TV by ourselves, and man, you’ll never, ever catch me swearing around Ruby. She’s got a mind purer than than anyone I know now.”_

_Blake laughed, finding joy in Yang’s goofy story. The blond was always full of jokes and and funny tales. Hanging out with her always brightened Blake’s mood. She nursed a half glass of white wine and tried to pace herself on her fish tacos. It was a struggle not inhaling the food, but she didn’t want to look like a total pig in front of Yang, who was drinking her signature strawberry sunrise and munching on a plate of wings._

_Weiss was back at the dorm studying (Blake and Yang both deciding they needed a break, Weiss was insatiable) and Ruby had gone home to see Taiyang and visit Summer’s grave that weekend._

_“Why didn’t you go home with Ruby?” Blake asked, taking a sip from her drink. It was light, bitter, and refreshing. She’d acquired a taste for it in Vale. Adam had always preferred sake and she was glad to no longer have to drink it._

_“I was going to, but Ruby doesn’t travel by herself very often.” Yang leaned back in her chair, getting her signature ‘big sister’ look. “The last time she did she forgot her ticket and me and dad had to go get her. It’s good practice for her y’know? I can’t always look after her...”_

_She leaned on her arm and looked out towards the ocean, a wistful look in her eyes. “I probably baby her too much honestly. Being at Beacon with her is like a dream come true. I can always take care of her on missions and stuff.”_

_“I don’t think you need to worry about being a good big sister Yang.” Blake smiled. “You’re like a mom to the whole group. You never left Weiss’s side when she got sick last month.”_

_Yang waved her hand. “Eh, that was nothing. You should have seen me when dad got the stomach flu one time. Me and Ruby had to switch off vomit duty.”_

_Blake stuck out her tongue, wondering why on earth Yang thought that was a good thing to say right as she was about to take a bite of her food._

_“Whoops. Sorry Blake.” Yang chuckled, noting Blake’s obvious disgust. Her partner softened her expression and looked back at her, appearing somewhat sad for some reason. Yang was incredibly thoughtful and often had serious expressions on her face. Rarely did she look depressed though._

_“What’s wrong?” Blake asked, raising an eyebrow._

_“It’s just I uh…” Yang began, debating what she was going to say next. “Promise not to tell anyone?”_

_“Of course. I’m not exactly a blabber mouth Yang.” The faunus had gained a reputation for being quiet at school, regardless of how chatty she was around her own team. They and only a few others had earned enough of her trust for her to act goofy around._

_Yang chuckled. “... there’s a girl I like.”_

_Blake opened her mouth in surprise. Yang had never talked about dating or really experienced interest in anyone during their entire time at Beacon. Ruby hadn’t really either, but Blake wrote that off more as the girl being younger than everyone else and the fact that she seemed more attracted to the weapons than their owners. Her partner was crazy beautiful though. She’d always been surprised that Yang had never pursued anyone._

_“Who is it?” Blake asked, wondering who at Beacon had finally turned Yang Xiao Long’s head._

_“It’s a secret.” Yang responded, bringing a finger up to her lips. Blake rolled her eyes. Mystery woman it was._

_“I’m assuming you haven’t told her yet?” As much as she liked to pretend she was above petty gossip, Blake definitely wanted Yang to dish._

_“Nah. I don’t even know if she likes girls. Only seen her with guys.” Yang shrugged, taking a sip out of her drink. “Besides, she’s already seeing someone anyways.”_

_Blake smiled in sympathy. They fought terrible monsters, but none of them were above such base feelings. Not even Yang apparently. She reached across the table and grabbed Yang’s hand. The two had gotten used to physical contact with each other._

_“Well, she’s missing out then.”_

_Blake herself had gotten lucky. Sun had proven himself to be a far better boyfriend than she’d initially thought. He’d shown up the next day after their poor first date and apologized profusely, even buying her a new bow (the color was garish and she never wore it but it was sweet).  
They’d managed to make up and had been on a few more dates after that that had gone much better. He wasn’t perfect, but it was fun hanging out with him. Yang however, was the kind of girl who deserved the world. _

_Yang smiled sadly. “You sure know how to make a girl feel special Blake Belladonna.”_

_Blake rolled her eyes. Yang was quite the card._

_“I’ll get you another drink, on me.” Blake said. They’d taken public transit down today at Weiss’s insistence, so there weren’t any drunk driving concerns they needed to worry about. She called over a waiter to get another Strawberry Sunrise for Yang. With one of those little umbrellas of course._

_“Heh, thanks Blake. Wasn’t sure if you’d be interested in my girl trouble or not.” Yang laughed, gladly accepting the second drink._

_“It’s not a big deal.” Blake responded, finishing off her own drink._

_“It’s actually been a while since I had this much.” Yang said, taking a sip out of the new beverage. She gave a solid thumbs up to indicate the drink’s quality. “Wasn’t old enough back at Signal to drink and I never hit it too hard after I was. Gotta be a good older sister as always.”_

_“You’ve never had a rager?” Blake asked, incredulous. She herself had some regrettable nights back when she was with the White Fang._

_“I’m more than meets the eye Blakey.” Yang winked at her._

_“Have you thought about telling her how you feel?” Blake asked, bringing the conversation back to Yang’s paramore. Yang was always there when she needed to talk. She wanted to be there for her partner too._

_“I don’t think it’s a good idea.” Yang shrugged, drinking her beverage a little faster than before. “Sometimes it’s better for everyone if you keep quiet. I’ve seen what can happen when people don’t.”_

_“I just can’t believe anyone wouldn’t chose you Yang. You’re… a really special person.”  
She smiled at her partner. There was no one she trusted more in the world than Yang Xiao Long. Blake hadn’t anticipated being able to so open and vulnerable with anyone ever again._

_The conversation started to drift again after that, meandering its way back to bad puns and anecdotes, before the two took the bus and airship needed to get back to Beacon. It wasn’t a terribly long trip, but Yang kept rambling on about how much faster it would have been on her motorcycle._

_Blake kept a hand on Yang’s back her teammate stumbled back into the halls of their dorm, the blond having had a little too much to drink evidently. Honestly, Blake blamed herself for that. After Yang’s second drink she’d had a third, then a fourth, and Blake herself had even had an extra drink. She should never have encouraged her. Some friend she was._

_“I don’t wanna go back yet.” Yang mumbled, not too drunk to speak but clearly inebriated._

_“I’m getting you to bed Yang.” Blake responded, opening the door to the dorm. There was a note on the front from Weiss, explaining that she was going to be in the library most of the night. It was hard to believe how much Weiss actually studied, but it was something Blake respected about the heiress._

_“Ugh, Blake my head hurts. I was totally an idiot.” Yang said as Blake laid the blond down on her own bed. She didn’t want to risk trying to get Yang up onto her bunk._

_“It’s my fault Yang, I shouldn’t have pressured you.” Blake plopped down next to Yang._

_“It’s not your fault Blake. I’m supposed to be better than this.” Yang looked at blake, a guilty expression plastered across her face. Blake felt somewhat bad for her. It seemed like Yang always felt she had to act the bigger part, making sure she took care of her sister and everyone else she knew. She hoped the blond spent enough time on herself._

_Blake sat her up and placed an arm on her back. “You can’t put that on yourself Yang. You’re my best friend, I’m the one who should be better.”_

_Yang laughed. “Best friend. Right.”_

_Blake looked at her, confused by what she’d just said. Sure, Yang was drunk, but she never talked like that. She sounded sad and hurt. Her heart sank. Had she said something to offend Yang?_

_“Yang, are you alri-”_

_It was a surprisingly good feeling, Blake remembered, Yang pressing her lips against hers. They were soft and warm, warm like Yang always was. It was like being kissed by the sun. She didn’t know what to think or do. She just let it happen._

_Yang pulled back and looked at her, terror and horror coloring her expression. She looked like she just shot someone._

_“B-blake, I didn’t mean to, I’m sorry I-”_

_It was hard to think straight. She grabbed Yang’s face and brought their lips together again. Her first thought was that she didn’t know what was going on. Her second thought was Sun would feel betrayed and that this was wrong. Her third thought was that she felt selfish and didn’t care. And her fourth thought was that she wanted this too._

_It was such a strange moment. Yang was such a beautiful person. Inside and out. The blond gladly reciprocated and leaned into the kiss, digging her hands into Blake’s hair, trying to bring her even closer than she already was._

_She felt like she was in one of her trashy romance novels. She felt like she was weightless. They fell down onto the bed in a tangle, Yang grasping at her and pulling tightly. Blake pulled away, staring at Yang’s lilac eyes._

_“Yang,” She breathed, cradling the blond’s face in her hands. The faunus was trying to let her better judgement override her raw emotions. They couldn’t be doing this. “I can’t-”_

_“I love you.” Yang whispered. There were tears welling in small pools at the bottom of her eyes._

_Blake’s heart did a backflip. In Vino Veritas. In wine, the truth._

_How could she love her? She shouldn’t and she knew it was wrong. There was Sun and Yang was a human. They were partners. Besides, Blake was bad. She was a bad person and Yang was so good._

_Did she love Yang back? Could she love a human like that? She was definitely drunk. For sure._

_She couldn’t think right. Blake grabbed her again, kissing her neck and bringing her in tightly against her. Yang was so warm; like being in front of a fire place, safe and at home. Like the sun beating down her back at home on Menagerie._

_It felt ok, letting Yang so close. No one had been this close since Adam, and Yang was so different than him. So different. It was like comparing rot and decay to life itself. Someone who burned so bright and gave all of herself to others._

_Blake woke up the next morning with Yang’s arms wrapped around her, thankfully fully clothed._

_Oh no. Blake thought to herself. Oh no._

_This was bad. This was really, really bad. She gingerly pulled Yang’s arms off of her, eliciting a groan that sounded something like ‘five more minutes’ from her partner. Hustling over to her wardrobe, she grabbed her clothes as fast as she could and walked over to the bathroom. Weiss was nowhere to be found, but a note was taped to the washroom door that was in Weiss’s characteristic immaculate handwriting._

_‘We’ll talk later.’_

_Blake’s cat ears pinned themselves to her head in shame. They were really gonna get it from Weiss later, and for good reason. She’d cheated on Sun. For all Weiss knew they had slept together. All very bad things._

_Yang was slowly rousing herself back in bed, blond hair extra messy from the uh, rough night._

_“Oh fuck.” She swore, startling Blake. Yang didn’t swear often, usually only when she was very angry. Apparently she was just as uncomfortable and confused about the whole situation._

_Her partner looked over at Blake and flushed a bright red, jumping off the bed at light speed. Blake’s face turned a similar shade of red._

_“Cat’s outta the bag I guess…” Yang laughed weakly.  
_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kissing??? KISSING?? Yang's gonna start punching things again.


	10. Chapter 10

A left kick followed by an uppercut. A feint into a tackle. A block in front of her solar plexus. A strike at the neck. Yang kept her breathing steady and slow, making short work of the Beowulfs that came at her. She wasn’t back to her level from before The Fall, but she finally felt she was on the right track. Invincible? Far from it, but she would no longer let simple Grimm stand in her way.

As she fought she favored her left side more and more, the mechanical arm still a completely foreign body for the most part. It wasn’t too much of a hassle considering she’d proven herself more than capable of kicking butt with just her left arm. 

Raven casually swatted a Beowulf who had made the mistake of getting too close. “If you leaned into your left side anymore you’d fall over and eat shit.”

“I know that!” Yang responded, irritated. As much as she was trying to keep a cool head during her so called training, Raven had a tendency to throw gas on the fire that was Yang’s eternally burning flame of anger. 

She backed away from a grimm, flexing the fingers on the metal hand. Yang hadn’t actually hit anything with it yet, only having used it in passing to deflect attacks. 

Ugh. Fine. It was like ripping off a bandaid right? She should just get it over with. Bending her knees, Yang grounded herself as one of the three Beowulf remaining approached her, curling her ‘hand’ into a fist. Adjusting to the weight was weird. It was slightly heavier than her normal arm was, and while it wasn’t so bad she was falling over, her combat stance had to be adjusted a fair bit to find a new balance. 

No more putting it off. It was time to shine. The Grimm charged forward and launched itself, claws extended. Yang easily spun her body to avoid the attack and drove her metal fist into its head, leading with centrifugal force. When the blow made contact it was messy. The Beowulf practically exploded, gore and ichor spewing out all across the forest. 

Normally Yang would have been disgusted by the large amount of crap she was covered in, but she was stunned. She knew the metal would pack a punch, but not that much. Staring at the metal arm, she couldn’t help but let a smile crawl across her face. Yang glanced at Raven at saw that even she had been impressed, apparently.

Yeah. This thing could be fun. She let the adrenaline pump through her veins, lighting her spirit on fire. It was probably wrong that she found such renewed joy in cutting down Grimm; she’d always had a dislike for that part of her. Ruby fought them altruistically; she’d always wanted to be a hero and fighting Grimm fulfilled that dream. 

Yang just enjoyed the fight. She loved the drug of adrenaline. When she was younger she relied on it to help her through Summer’s death, before she realized that it was hurting the people around her. It would always be a part of her though; her current state made that painfully obvious. She flexed the fingers on her new arm, watching the ichor from the Grimm drip onto the ground. 

“What’s with that look?” Raven asked, pacing around Yang.

Yang scowled. “Whatever.”

\------  
 _  
“Not much longer now.” Raven said, wrapping her twin into a hug. Screams and wails rang out through the town, the citizens desperately trying to fight back against a force that was far stronger than them. The tribe that had adopted Qrow and Raven was powerful. And it was cruel. Tribute would be paid regardless of how much the villagers wanted to keep their food and goods._

_“Is this everything?” The leader of their tribe loomed over a pile of goods they’d taken from the town._

_“How could you possibly want more?!” A villager screamed, holding her family close to her. The only response she received was the lifeless gaze of the tribe’s leader, hidden behind the ivory pale of a Grimm mask._

_“Take the goods. It’s time to leave.” The leader spoke, turning their back on the scared and confused villagers._

_They turned to Raven and Qrow, the boy pushing his head a little further into his sister’s shoulder._

_“You two can help as well. Qrow, you must earn your keep.” They tossed a bag of goods at the siblings’ feet. Raven frowned, pulling her brother away from her and placing the bag in her brother’s hands. They were children; both of them just nine years old. Neither of them were quite sure what had happened to their parents. One day they were simply gone and never returned._

_Whether or not they had simply perished or decided to leave Raven and Qrow didn’t know. The two of them struggled on their own in the rural lands of anima, able to push through using their hereditary powers. They’d been taken in by the tribe shortly afterward, the current leader having been impressed with the children's’ survivability._

_“You have to help Qrow.” She whispered, carrying off a stack of loot herself._

_“But this is wrong.” Qrow responded, looking back at her with eyes that betrayed a sadness far deeper than any child should have to face._

_“It doesn’t matter if it’s wrong or not, it’s that or dying.”_

_He looked absolutely miserable. Her brother had far too kind of a heart to stomach the Tribe’s unsavory actions. He turned his head away when people were cut down and beaten; something Raven was becoming all too familiar with. If Qrow couldn't handle things, she would. She’d protect them both, even if it meant doing things that were painful._

_Qrow sighed and followed after her, the two treading in the tracks of the older members in the tribe._

_“I know it’s hard.” She walked beside him.  
“You don’t seem to have much trouble with it.” His eyes were locked on the ground. _

_“Because I don’t want us to die Qrow.” Raven hissed._

_“I want to leave.” Her brother finally turned to face her. “Let’s run away.”_

_“What, so we can starve to death in the forest again?” She rolled her eyes. It wasn’t the first time he had suggested they run._

_“I mean it this time!” He shot back, brow creasing downward. “We’re strong enough to do it now. They won’t be able to catch us.”_

_Raven didn’t respond, gazing downward at the ground as the two plodded onwards. There was no leaving the tribe. Probably not ever._

\-----

“Hey,” Yang broke the silence that had settled between the two. Raven looked up from her meal, a simple stew she’d learned how to make from the tribe out of crap from the forest, and looked at the younger woman. She was sitting across from her around the fire, Zwei relaxing in her lap (Raven begrudgingly admitted to herself that the dog was rather cute), belly pointed up to the sky. Yang had taken the metal arm off, letting the mechanical appendage rest on the ground. 

“What?” Raven said curtly. She didn’t like it when Yang asked her questions, or even when she tried to talk to her at all. It hurt. They were never have supposed to have met in the first place, but Salem’s plans were unavoidable.

Raven didn’t want Yang to die. She wanted her to survive and be better person than her mother had ever been capable of. Raven knew that she was bad. That she was irredeemable. 

Evil.

“Do you know about… I mean, stuff like this?” Yang raised what was left of her right arm. She looked apprehensive, a wince of pain flashing across her face.

“What do you mean?” Raven responded, red eyes resting on her daughter. 

“It’s stupid right?” Yang laughed weakly, gingerly touching her arm. “It still hurts.”

She didn’t have first hand experience with it, but Raven knew from others she had met, hunters, huntresses, members of her tribe, who had faced the same misfortune Yang had. They all felt similar, often feeling like they still possessed their missing appendages. Some felt excruciating pain while others simply felt a ghost like sensation. 

“It’s not stupid.” Raven prodded the stones in the fire. It gave her a temporary excuse not to look Yang in the eye. “You lost your arm. Something that had been with you your whole life.”

She sighed and looked over at Yang. “You… it’s not an injury many can recover from. I can’t say the pain will ever go away. Surviving something like that can make you stronger than most though, if you can push past it.”

You have to be strong. Raven frowned. So that when they come for you you will destroy them. 

“I haven’t though.” Yang stared into the fire. “I haven’t recovered from it.”  
She squeezed her hand into a fist. 

“You can still fight.” Raven responded. 

“That’s not what I’m worried about.” Yang picked a handful of dirt and sprinkled back onto the ground. “I lost everything. If I can get back to Ruby… if I get back to her will I actually be able to help her?”

She chuckled. “I don’t know why I’m talking to you, you don’t care.”

Raven was silent. What was she supposed to say? She remembered the first night Yang spent at their camp. The girl had thrashed and roiled in her sleep, mumbling nonsense and curses. Subsequent nights were just as fitful and showed no signs of stopping, despite the apparent progress she had made.

She didn’t regret leaving Yang on her own at Beacon, even though it had hurt her to see the girl bloodied and beaten, lying on the ground with her friends and her desperate partner. Strength had a high price, often paid for in blood. If Yang truly couldn’t recover from what happened, she would die. If she did however, her strength would be immense. Raven still had injuries from when Yang had attacked her. 

Yang scowled at her, Zwei pressing his ears down against his head as though it would protect him from the tension between the two 

“... I haven't recovered yet, but I will.” Yang closed her eyes, searching for strength. “I have to. For Ruby.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Real life is getting busy so updates will for sure be slower :(  
> Thanks for reading this far! Leave a comment if you're so inclined and have a nice day .,.


	11. Chapter 11

_Yang and Blake were outside Beacon, laying down on their backs in the grass and staring at the sky. It was a cloudy day, big gray puffs rolling across the sky threatening rain. They needed to talk about what happened last night. Neither of them wanted to._

_Yang felt ashamed. She felt horrible. What she had done to Blake was inexcusable. She’d pushed her feeling on her partner when she wasn’t thinking straight._

_“I’m sorry.” Yang looked over at Blake, who was staring at her._

_“That’s my line.” Blake responded._

_“Let’s forget about it ok? It was an accident.” Yang sighed, feeling like her heart was weighed down by anchors._

_“... you told me you loved me.” Her partner said the thing Yang was the most afraid of._

_“I know.” It took her a moment to respond. She looked at Blake’s eyes, seeing sadness and confusion reflected there._

_“Do you?” What a seemingly simple question. Of course she loved her. It was a seemingly simple thing yet one of the most difficult things Yang had had to do in a long, long time._

_“Yeah. I think I do.” Yang responded, rising up from the grass and bringing her knees to her chest. Blake followed suit, sitting next to the blond with her legs crossed._

_“Did you talk to Sun?” Yang asked. She knew the two faunus were a couple and she’d unintentionally or not thrown a wrench in things._

_“No. I don’t think I will.” Blake sighed, tucking a lock of hair behind her head and looked at Yang._

_She ran her hands through her hair and let out a deep breath, feeling an awfully large amount of emotions welling up inside of her. It was clear to her that Blake had been hurt and that it was her fault._

_“I’m sorry.” Yang repeated, unable to look Blake in the eye._

_The faunus shrugged._

_Sometimes it was easy to tell what Blake was thinking, even though she was normally reserved. There were certain things she wasn’t subtle about. Unfortunately for Yang, Blake was being subtle._

_“... I think we should try to go back to the way things were.” Blake looked at her, face curled into a frown. “I-I just think that would be best.”_

_Yang tried to smile. Her chest hurt. “Yeah, I think so too.”_

\-----

“That boy you brought with you sure likes to talk a lot.” Kali said, chuckling to herself as she brought a tray of tea out onto the balcony. Blake rolled her eyes, rubbing her arms to help keep herself warm in the night air. Sun had been talking her mom’s ear off for the better part of an hour. 

“Are you going to speak with your father?” Her mother asked, cat ears tilting to the side in curiosity. Blake’s ears pressed against her head. She wanted to talk to her father, she really did, but her feet were frozen in place, weighed down by apprehension and confusion. Ghira awaited in the room behind her, pouring over paperwork and requests from the town. He never got much of a chance to rest, even back before Blake left. 

“I want to.” Blake responded, smelling the fresh tea her mother had brought out. 

“Well then do it.” Kali suddenly thrust the tray of tea into Blake’s hands and headed back inside the house. “I want to hear more about team RWBY.”

Blake sighed. She didn’t even want to know what Sun was telling her mother. Another moment passed as Blake stood in front of her father’s door, hand poised to knock. It felt like there were ropes tied around her wrist holding her hand back, keeping her from moving forward.

“Kali, is that you?” Her father’s voice was muffled through the door. 

Blake took a deep breath. She opened the door and cautiously entered the room, sweat coating her palms. 

“Blake.” Ghira said, surprised at his daughter’s appearance. 

“Hi dad.” Blake approached him with trepidation, keeping a shaky grip on the tea. He smiled at her as she approached and placed the tray onto the table in front of them. Silence filled the space between them. Awkward, uncomfortable silence. 

“I’m sorry dad.” She finally said, her voice barely above a whisper. “I’m so sorry dad.”

“What are you apologizing for?” Ghira responded with a soft chuckle, resting his hand on Blake’s shoulder. “We’re not mad at you for anything Blake.”

“How can you not be mad?!” Blake’s hands balled into fists. “... how can you not be mad? I ran from you. I called you cowards.”

“The only thing we ever feared was that you would go down the wrong path.” He pulled her into a hug, feeling his daughter’s rapid heartbeat and pounding breaths. 

“It’s clear that hasn’t happened. The only thing I wanted was to see you again.” 

She sobbed, staining his shoulder with tears. “I did though. I’m a bad person.”

Ghira sighed and squeezed her tightly. “No one is free from mistakes Blake. The difference is that the good push past their faults. They make things right.”

He smiled. “I’m so proud to call you my daughter Blake.” They paused for a moment, Blake clutching onto her father with a tight grip. 

“Blake… what happened? Why did you come back?” Her father asked, gently pushing his daughter out of their hug so he could look at her. Blake’s eyes shimmered, tears threatening to burst forth.

She took a deep breath and held it in. Blake hadn’t told anyone what happened at Beacon with Adam and Yang. Anyone. She was ashamed. Yang would be fine if they had never met. She and Ruby would be ok and happy. Even Weiss would have been better off. 

Yang would have been fine. She would have been safe. 

“... Adam happened.” Blake finally said, bringing herself into an even tighter hug than from before. She touched the scar on her abdomen, feeling the old wound throb. The room suddenly felt hotter; like she could feel the fires from that night pricking her skin again. 

Ghira growled darkly. He had no love for the man who had taken his daughter from him and had helped turn the Fang into an organization of chaos. Adam was a true monster. 

“What did he do Blake?” He stroked Blake’s head, knowing that this must have been impossibly difficult for her. 

It always came back to her in waves. She was getting tea with Weiss as Ruby watched the remaining matches. Yang was back at the dorm, still reeling from what had happened with Mercury. Then they showed up; the Grimm, the White Fang. Disaster struck so suddenly and without any warning. People ran, screaming and bleeding, trying to hide their children and lovers as Blake and the others tried to fight back. 

Fire burst around Vale and buildings and businesses she had frequented before with her friends fell and turned to ash. The smell of iron had been overwhelming. 

She’d split up with Weiss to track down the White Fang members as her teammate regrouped with the others. Blake had felt confident about it at the time. The Fang was her fight and she needed to protect people from them. 

Adam was there though. He acted like a demon. He was a demon. Far worse and far more soulless than any Grimm. She felt like an idiot. She should have always known. How could she not? She’d been blinded by love and passion and overlooked it when he beat her, or when he verbally assaulted her. So many times he had hurt her. 

She remembered each time in vivid detail. 

“He was there he-” Blake began, choking on her words. “Yang…” 

Tears began to flow freely from her eyes once again. “It’s my fault, he hurt her and it’s all my fault…”

Her father brought her into another hug, letting her cry freely into his shoulder. She could barely talk about it. She could see her hand outstretched again, reaching for Yang, her partner. It was horrible. Normally her body was so warm, burning like a fire. Her hand had been so cold when she grasped it. It shouldn’t have taken that night for her to realize that she loved Yang. It shouldn’t have ended the way it had. 

A beautiful person like Yang; a goddess in her own right, full of kindness and love, stained and broken by violence and hate, pulled into the fire by Blake’s past. She had been the dark shadow that had blotted out the light of Yang Xiao Long. 

“It’s ok Blake. You’re safe now.” Ghira squeezed her. 

“It’s not ok though.” Blake sobbed. “I ruined her life. And I left her behind!”

She wailed into her father’s shoulder, grasping onto to him like a lifeline. “I thought I was doing the right thing, I thought I was keeping her safe! I’m just a coward!”

Her eyes stung. She’d cried plenty after she’d left her team but this felt like a dam breaking down. “I miss them so much. I want to see them again. Ruby, Weiss… Yang.” 

They stayed together for a while, Blake sobbing and Ghira holding her. He knew his daughter needed to get it out. Needed to wail and scream and shout; afterwards they could talk more. For now she simply needed this moment. 

It felt good, Blake thought, to just give up for a moment. Her breathing gradually returned to normal and she was able to stop her sobs. 

“I don’t know if I can make things right again dad.” Blake wiped the tears from her cheeks. Her mouth tasted salty and her vision was still blurred. 

“It is never too late to make amends Blake.” Ghira smiled. “You are so strong. It’s not in the nature of man to never make mistakes. But owning up to those mistakes? You have courage that many would envy.”

Blake’s lips curled up to match her father’s smile as she tried to . He was truly a great man and she never wanted him out of her life again. 

“You can rest here for as long as you need to.” He gave her a pat on the back. “Though I’m not thrilled about your friend staying here the entire time. He’s very… loud.”

She couldn’t stifle a laugh. “Yes. Very.”

“You don’t have to keep talking about it now honey, but do you want to tell me about them? Your team?” 

“They were-” Blake took in a deep breath. “They were amazing. I’ve never met people so full of… light. If all humans were like them then we would never have had to fight in the first place.” 

She smiled, melancholy coloring her expression as she told her dad of her team. Fond memories bubbled up in her mind. 

“Ruby is incredibly bright and sharp. She loves helping people and she does it too. She’s so innocent, but it makes her strong.

“I hated Weiss when I first met her. She was a Schnee; she was the enemy. It revolted me to be on a team with her. But she’s so strong too, stronger than me. If there’s anyone who can change that terrible company… I think she could.” She laughed weakly. “She probably will.”

Blake felt tears pushing their way out of her eyes again, water streaming down her face without her consent. “And Yang…”

She remembered her. A smile that shone brighter than the sun itself. A laugh that was plated with gold and gleamed with light. Someone so warm that the cold and darkness were pushed away like an eternal summer. Someone whose absence left a gaping hole in the world. 

Everything seemed darker without her.

“I loved her.” Blake choked. “I never told her. She’s gone.”  
She felt despair, a black hole that sucked out all the light and sound. On that night she’d made a huge mistake. 

Surely Yang hated her now. 

“He took her arm.” Blake began sobbing again, burying her head in her hands as her father brought her into another massive hug. “And then I-I ran. I ran away.”

She felt like a pit had formed where her chest used to be. “I ran.”

Ghira squeezed her. He didn’t know what exactly had happened; he didn’t know Blake’s team. He knew Adam though. Ghira felt his heart sink as Blake confessed what she had done. Thinking about how it must have weighed on her the past few months was an unbearable pain. 

The rest of the night passed quietly as Blake wept. Eventually, she fell asleep in her father’s arms and he gently laid her back down onto the couch, draping a well worn wool blanket over her shoulders. She needed rest. Once that came, she could begin to heal. 

\-----

She was crawling. Her one arm pinched the dirt and dragged herself forward, slowly, unsteadily, face pelted with soil and rocks. It wasn’t clear to her where she was going, but Yang couldn’t stop herself. Forward. It was the only word she could feel at the front of her mind. 

Keep going. Her muscles ached. How much longer could she continue on like this? Every time she tried to stand she fell onto the ground once again and was forced to continue crawling. Yang gasped the earth before her and pulled, and pulled again. Her fingernails felt like they would peel off. The task was excruciating and humiliating. 

She heard voices from behind her. Bright voices tempered with an edge of darkness to them, voices that she once recognized. 

“Ruby?” She whispered, trying to turn back around, heart swelling with the desire to see her sister. There wasn’t anything else she wanted. 

Ruby, Jaune, Ren, and Nora walked forward, the four moving together as a pack. Yang called out to them, face growing wet with tears. 

“Ruby it’s me!” She cried, reaching for her sister. Her sister and the rest of her group didn’t react. 

“Ruby wait!” Yang felt her blood chill. They walked right past her, leaving her behind crawling in the dirt. She tried to stand and stumbled forward, landing back onto the ground with a thud. 

“Stop, wait!” She screamed, watching as the group faded ahead into the distance. “Ruby!”  
They left her behind. It was probably for the best. How could she help them if she was stuck on the ground? She wailed till her throat felt raw.

Yang kept going, grasping with her one hand at the footprints Ruby had left behind. They seemed huge, like a giant had made them. Keep going, she continued to tell herself. Keep going. 

She felt a weight on her feet and was flung back by an unseen force. With a shout she landed back on the ground again, skin tearing as she fell on the rough terrain. 

“Just as pathetic as last time.” The voice was condescending and deep, echoing with a vile coat of sadism. Yang looked up to see Adam, his blazing red hair and Grimm mask gazing down at her from above. He kicked dirt at her face. She tried to ignore him, tried to push him away, tried to keep crawling forward. 

“You are worthless.” She screamed as he stepped on her hand with his boot. 

“Pathetic.” Steel ran out as he drew his sword and brought it down upon her head.

\-----

Yang awoke with a shout, disturbing the rest of her plucky pooch who had been sleeping on her stomach. He whimpered and ran around her in a circle, nuzzling against her with his snout. She dove for the nearest set of bushes and threw up, breathing heavily and holding the upper part of her right arm against her chest. 

She was furious; as much as she thought she was moving forward, nightmares and pain still plagued her. Would they ever go away? Yang slammed her fist into a nearby tree. And then again. The bark was bent and cracked, splintering underneath the force of her attack. It hurt her hand but she didn’t care. 

A scream roared from her throat, raw and full of anger. Her state the past few months was a poor excuse for living. She wanted things to go back to the way they always were, even though she was well aware of the impossibility. At the very least she’d find Ruby. She promised herself that. 

Raven watched from a distance, unsure of how to treat Yang in her current state. Almost every night the girl had a nightmare of some sort, almost certainly related to the terrible night that Beacon fell. It hadn’t been pleasant for Raven either, watching her old home fall. There was nothing to be done however. The school was destined to fall. She had convinced herself time and time again that that was the truth. It had to be. 

“Don’t stare at me.” Yang said, wiping her mouth and sitting back down on the ground. It was mortifying to have someone like Raven see her so low. The older woman probably couldn’t even hear her. 

Raven simply prodded the stones in the fire as she always did, an ultimately meaningless task that simply passed the time. She was no stranger to nightmares herself, but that didn't mean she had any helpful advice for Yang. Over time she'd simply gotten used to them. Her semblance had showed her that anyone could die and at anytime. Attachments to others were a danger and a distraction from the bigger picture. 

She wouldn't be with Yang much longer regardless. While the girl was far from capable of taking on Salem’s inner circle, Raven was confident that the death she had seen would be avoided. Just having moved the girl from patch had prevented an untimely demise for Yang, and hopefully her father as well. 

Tyrion, a scorpion faunus who worked for Salem would have arrived at their small home on patch, searching for Summer’s daughter. He would kill Yang almost immediately, piercing her chest with his tail and watching her writhe to death from poison. Tai would be struck, but not without dealing a major blow to his enemy. The dream faded away after that. She looked at Yang, trying push away the image of her lying dead and lifeless out of her mind. The girl had recovered some of her color over the past few days, and was starting to move like a fighter again. It was a far better sight than the grey and bloody images Raven had seen. 

“You said there were people you were in charge of. Who are they?” Yang’s voice broke the silence. Her eyes bored into Raven, searching for answers. It had bothered her ever since her ‘mother’ had mentioned it. How could these people be more important than her team, her family. 

“The people who raised your uncle and myself.” Raven said, eyes focused on the flames. “A tribe here on Anima.”

Yang’s eyes narrowed. A tribe? There weren’t many tribes out there in the wilderness so much as bandits. 

“I’m their leader.” Raven added, setting down the fire prod. 

“What?” Yang couldn’t help but raise her voice. 

“Speaking of which,” Raven looked up from the fire at the sky, bringing her arm out to catch a bird as it landed. A red eyed raven. 

Yang stood up and backed away slightly, caught off guard by the sight. It wasn’t everyday you saw such a large bird just land on someone all of sudden. The creature brought its beak to Raven’s ear as though it was whispering secrets. The older woman’s eyes narrowed and she sent the bird away with a quick motion of her arm, the black creature fading back into the horizon. 

“I have to go.” Raven said, standing up and carving open a portal with her sword. 

“You’re just leaving again?” Yang responded, the irritation clear in her voice. Raven didn’t respond, and moved into the hellish orifice. The younger woman was tired of Raven’s silence and excuses. She bolted after her, diving into the portal seconds before it disappeared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, I'm back again... Sorry updates have been sporadic lately. I just finished moving into a new place so hopefully I'll be able to get on a three updates a week schedule! Thanks so much for reading this far, and please leave a comment if you'd like! I'll try to get back to you :)


	12. Chapter 12

_Stupid, stupid, stupid!_ Yang screamed at herself in her head. She really needed to stop jumping into mysterious hell portals. Landing on a paved walkway with a thud, Yang rolled over onto her side and jumped back to her feet as quickly as she could. It was midmorning and the sun was struggling to poke through a mass of clouds. The air felt cold and heavy.

“You idiot!” She could hear her mother. 

Yang was knocked back over onto her feet by a seething Raven, red eyes alight with anger.  
“What do you think you’re doing?” 

“Trying to find out what’s so important you abandoned us!” Yang screamed back, eyes flashing bright red as she wobbled back up to her feet. She was taken aback as she finally took in her surroundings. They were surrounded by a large group of people, all dressed in a myriad of black and red armor and robes, all looking at Yang in confusion and surprise. Only one person was ever supposed to exit those portals. 

All of them were in the burnt out remains of some town. Whatever had happened had happened a long time ago; moss covered broken support beams and rotten wood. The style of the buildings was distinctively in the style of Menagerie with slanted roofs and chiseled tiles. Wherever they were, the city probably wasn’t far away. 

Raven put her mask on, pale white obscuring her features. Yang grabbed her right arm, suddenly thankful she’d placed the metal prosthetic on earlier. A member from what Yang assumed to be the ‘tribe’ walked out from the rest and approached Raven. 

“Who is this?” They asked her in a quiet voice, gesturing towards Yang. Raven never took her sights off Yang, though it was now impossible to see what was going on behind the mask. Yang felt like thousands of needles were boring into her skin.

“It doesn’t matter.” Raven finally said, turning to the tribe member who had approached her. “Where is he?” 

Wordlessly, the tribe member gestured behind them, the entire group including Raven moving in sync to some location unknown to Yang. They all ignored her, following after their masked leader. 

She waited as the group left without her, a few of the members taking passing glances back at her. Did they know Raven had a daughter, or even who she was? Did they see their resemblance, the resemblance that Yang hated so much? She grit her teeth and followed after them. There were few other options available to her. 

Raven stalked forward down the path, hand gripped tightly around her sword grip. She didn’t want Yang to be here. Yang was never supposed to be here. 

“Is that her?” Mars asked, her most trusted member of the tribe walking slightly behind her. They were a powerful warrior, excellent at slaying Grimm and others and loyal to a fault. Mars’s kimono was adorned with a Beowulf skull on the shoulder, signifying their rank. “Your daughter.” 

Raven didn’t answer, knuckles turning bright white against the handle of her sword. 

“She has your eyes.” They added. “That Branwen blood is unmistakeable.” 

“I’m not her mother.” Raven finally responded. “Her mother died a long time ago.”

\-----  
_  
Raven took deep, slow breaths over the sink in their dorm bathroom, trying not to vomit again. Summer had her hand placed on her shoulder, trying to soothe her shaken teammate._

_“It’s ok.” She said in that ever so sweet voice of hers. Any politician or leader would kill for a voice so disarming. “It’s ok Raven.”_

_It was mortifying to be comforted by someone she didn’t know well yet. They’d been attending Beacon for a little over 4 months now and she’d been struggling far more than her brother to open up to their team. Tai would often speak with her and try to get her to open up, and he and Qrow had become good friends. Summer was a bit more of an enigma._

_“I don’t need your help.” Raven mumbled, feeling ashamed. She’d had nightmares of the future her whole life. She could take care of herself._

_Summer chuckled. “Sure you don’t.”_

_Raven rolled her eyes. She didn’t usually share her visions with anyone but Qrow, as it was most often they needed to prevent misfortune to him anyways. His semblance almost guaranteed that. It was like she was born to watch after him. Most recently she’d seen him fall on their next mission, taken surprise by a King Taijitu and ripped apart by the snake’s fangs._

_Naturally, she wouldn’t let that happen._

_“What do you see Raven?” Summer asked, grasping her partner’s hand. Raven flinched slightly at the touch._

_“Sorry.” Summer brought her hand back after seeing Raven’s reaction. The long haired girl sighed. She didn’t entirely trust Summer, not yet at least. Tai was easy to see through, and she had known her twin since the day they were born. But she couldn’t see through Summer’s eyes. The girls silver eyes simply reflected back… nothing. They weren’t like Raven’s, whom’s eyes always betrayed her emotions._

_“It’s fine.” Raven responded, pushing herself off the bathroom sink. “I’m fine.”_

_“Are you?” There was a hint of sadness in her voice. “You’re incredibly strong Raven. But everyone is weak sometimes.”_

_“I am not weak.” Raven growled, red glaring at silver. “I don’t need you to baby me.”_

_Summer simply smiled again, as though it was impossible for anything to get to her. “If you want to talk I’m here you know.”_

_She turned to walk out of the bathroom and leave Raven to her own devices when the other girl stopped her, grasping her wrist before she could leave._

_“Have you… ever seen someone die?” Raven asked, hesitation in her voice._

_“I have.” Summer grimaced taking Raven’s hand in hers._

_“... I want to talk about it.”_  
  
\-----

“You’re a fool.” Raven spoke to a man with bound hands beneath her, a younger member of the tribe with panic staining his features. 

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I won’t do it again I swear-”

She sighed. This was a complete waste of time. He had stolen from the tribe; taken something that wasn’t his, despite knowing the punishment for being caught. He would lose his hands, rendered unable to take anything ever again. It was the law of the tribe, and the way things had always been. Raven remembered the first time she had seen the amputation herself as a child. It was a brutal, archaic, violent punishment. She took no joy in it. 

But it was simply the way things were. It was her job as leader to enforce their laws, to ensure their survival. It was the way things had always been and it kept them strong, strong enough to stand up to any force. 

“Put his hands up.” Raven commanded, two others bringing the man’s hands to rest upon an old block of wood. 

Yang arrived to a rather strange scene. All of the tribe were circled around some poor guy with bound hands. Raven drew her sword, the bright red blade just as long and menacing as the last time Yang had seen it. 

“What are you doing?” Yang pushed through the crowd surrounding the man. 

“This isn’t your business.” Raven turned to her, the irritation clear in her voice. 

“P-please, help me! Don’t do this!” The man cried out, unable to escape from the two holding him down. 

“You’ve no one to blame but yourself.” Raven hissed, raising her sword above her head. Yang grabbed her arm before she could bring the blade down on the man’s hands, halting the blow. 

“Let go. Now.” Raven’s voice dripped with venom. 

“What are you doing?! Let him go!” Yang shouted, not letting go of Raven’s wrist. Raven could feel the eyes of her tribe resting on her. She couldn’t let Yang stop her now. She had to set an example. It was her duty. 

She pushed her daughter away with a forceful push, sending the girl careening into the ground once again. In a single deft motion she brought her blade down on the man’s hands, lopping them off of his wrists. He cried out in agony, blood pouring onto the ground. 

Yang screamed at the sight, grabbing her right arm tightly as her mind was thrust back to the night that Beacon fell. Her arm lit up with pain, the feeling of Adam severing her arm, the feeling of losing consciousness, losing herself, the feeling of being abandoned again.

By everyone. 

“No!” She let go of her arm and rushed at Raven, fire bursting around her in a small explosion as her eyes turned once again to the color of blood. Raven twisted her wrist, red sword colliding with altesian metal as Yang slammed her first into Raven’s sword. 

“You’re a monster.” The words felt like daggers coming out of her mouth. She knew it. She never should have tried to open up to Raven. She was a monster through and through. The most disgusting thought was that some of that evil could be resting within herself as well. 

“I know.” Raven responded in a surprisingly quiet voice. She pushed back with the sword, the two leaping back away from each other. Yang flexed the fingers on her metal arm. Whatever material Raven’s sword was made out of, her new arm was strong enough to stand up to it. 

Thanks Ironwood. She thought to herself, spacing her feet apart as she dropped into a boxing stance. The members of the tribe closed in on the two, a few members dragging the miserable man from earlier away. Weapons clanked against sheathes as they were drawn and Yang could feel their intent to kill. 

“Stay out of this.” Raven’s voice boomed, commanding the people around them. As if on cue, the mob back away, sheathing their weapons. Yang gulped. She couldn’t back down now. 

She moved in once again, raining a blow of punches down upon Raven. Left, right, the punches were fast, but not fast enough to strike Raven. The older woman deftly moved her sword the block the blows, Yang’s left hand gathering a few cuts in the process. She didn’t have her gauntlet with her.

Yang leapt forward with a roundhouse kick, colliding with a block from Raven as she kept her leg up, striking at the woman two more times before flipping forward and trying to strike her with the back of her metal fist. The blow made a resonant sound throughout the village, metal striking metal. She grit her teeth in frustration. None of her blows had actually connected with Raven. How long could she possibly keep this up?

Raven sighed and sheathed her sword, jumping back from Yang. She looked back at her mother, confused, as the barrel that made up the sheath of Raven’s sword rotated, clicking into place once it rested on a green hue. 

She pulled the hilt out of the sheath, the distinctive red sword from before missing. Instead, a green bow appeared instead, shimmering with dust. 

“Give up.” Raven spoke, green light reflecting off of her Grimm mask. She raised the bow and an arrow appeared in a shimmer with light. Her motions were deft and swift. The arrow let loose, propelled by the power of dust, aimed straight for Yang. She threw herself out of the way, rolling onto the cobblestone as the wind arrow flew past her. The receding gust still managed to throw her off balance. 

Before she had time to get back up Raven was upon her once again, wielding the same eponymous red blade from before. The katana sliced through stone, narrowly avoiding Yang as she managed to roll out of the way. She scrambled to her feet, arms raised in defense as Raven swung her sword at her once again. Yang raised her left arm, letting the blade sink into her flesh as she channeled all of her aura into her arm. The blade still cut into her arm a good few inches, blood spewing out onto Raven’s mask. 

Yang’s eyes glowed an otherworldly red as fire surrounded her metal fist. 

“Eat this!” Yang screamed, ignoring the pain as she swung her right arm at Raven’s face, semblance allowing her to send Raven’s attack right back her. Her first collided with Raven’s mask, sending the older woman flying backwards with a crack, mask shattering against the force of Yang’s blow. 

She could hear gasps from the group surrounding them as Raven landed against the stones, her Grimm mask split into three jagged pieces. Yang’s breaths came at an abnormal rate, chest heaving against the exertion as she tried to ignore the pain in her left hand. Had she actually won? 

“You’ve really done it now.” Raven’s voice was cold and full of malice. She rose from the stones, blood dripping down her forehead. Her eyes were full of fury and sadness. It took Yang aback, seeing the woman injured and the expression that rested upon her face. 

Her weapon rotated around again, resting on a blue color. She gripped the handle, pulling out a long dust battle axe, charged with ice and frost. Yang was far too exhausted to defend herself from what was to come. Raven charged at her, swinging the mighty blade at her. It was all Yang could do to throw her arm up in defense at the last second, the blow easily knocking her into the dirt. 

Her world reeled around her, her vision blurry from the blow. Her chest hurt and she was almost certain that some of her ribs were broken. She had bet everything on that one punch from earlier and she had failed. 

_I guess this is where I die._ She thought to herself, closing her eyes as she heard Raven’s footsteps approaching her. 

“Get out.” 

The footsteps returned and then faded away into the distance. The group followed after and soon Yang was alone once again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We don't know quite what Raven's weapon does so I took some libertiiiiiiies   
> Anyways we're out of the first act here now, thanks for reading this far! Drop a comment or a criticism and I'll do my best to get back to you :)


	13. Chapter 13

Blake and Sun sat on the coast of Menagerie, eating some food they had grabbed from a nearby food stand. 

“Anyways, that’s when Scarlett's boyfriend came in, and man, you should have seen that guy’s face.”

Blake chuckled at Sun’s story, even though she was only half listening. It was the third day she had been back home on Menagerie, trying to recover from what happened to her.

“Are you actually paying attention?” Sun pouted, puffing out his lips and he crossed his arms.

“Hm? Oh, sorry Sun.” Blake said, embarrassed that she’d been found out. It was hard for her to stay focused. Her conversation with her father the night before had opened up old wounds, even though it had felt good to finally tell someone about what happened. She felt aimless though. What was she supposed to do now?

“It’s ok Blake.” He sighed, his usual broad smile a little smaller than usual. Silence overtook the two as they sat on the beach, the waves of the ocean providing the only sound. 

“I’m sorry.” Sun crossed his legs and placed his hands on his knees. 

“For what?” Blake asked, cat ears making a small twitch. He’d been more quiet today than the others. 

“I dunno I just… y’know I thought when I followed you,” He began, scratching the back of his head. “I thought we’d go together on this crazy adventure and fight the Fang and stuff. I feel like an idiot now. It’s probably good that you slapped me.”

“It’s not ok that I did that.” Blake frowned. She’d been furious when she first saw that Sun had followed her home. Her anger had cooled, and part of her was glad he had followed her. It felt kind of good to have a familiar face. 

“I was being an ass.” He shrugged. “But you know… even if you don’t ever want to fight again or anything, I’m here for you, y’know.”

She smiled, squeezing Sun’s hand. “Thanks… I don’t know what to do now. I’m scared Sun. I don’t think I can stay here long.”

He squeezed her hand back, doing his best to put on a happy face.  
“It’ll be ok. I think you’ll figure it out. You’re a lot smarter than I am.”

She let go of his hand and chuckled again. “Don’t sell yourself short. I’m… sort of glad you came along.” 

Blake brought her arms across her chest. “I think you should leave soon though. Staying around me is dangerous.”

“Hey, I need to go back to Mistral anyways. But not until I know you’ll be safe.” He gave her playful shove on the shoulder. “You can’t do everything alone Blake.”

“Even if I can’t, it’s better for everyone else this way.” She pressed her forehead into her arms. “I can’t keep putting people in danger.”

Sun stood up. “That’s pretty selfish though don’t you think?”  
Blake was surprised to see him so irritated. Usually he just shrugged everything off. 

“Friends help ‘cause they want to Blake. Even if it puts them in danger. It’s our choice.”  
He sighed, looking out over the ocean. 

“I think she’d feel the same way Blake.” 

She flinched. Sun didn’t need to use her name to know who she was talking about. He may have been right, but what difference did it make? If Blake had never come into Yang’s life she’d still have her arm. 

“Are you ever going to see her again?” He sounded sad. “I think… I dunno if it’s my place but I think leaving hurt her a lot more than whatever the Fang did to her.”

Blake grasped her arms tightly, knuckles turning white. “You don’t understand!”   
She choked on her own anger. “You don’t understand…”

“I don’t. I can’t imagine what you’ve been through.” He shrugged, pacing back and forth on the beach. “But when Yang couldn’t find you when she woke up? I mean, hell, I thought she was going to tear the entire hospital apart. It was scary man. I think I understood that.”

She pushed back the searing salt from her eyes. Crying wasn’t something she wanted to do right now. 

“... can we talk about it later?” Blake asked weakly, standing up from her spot on the beach. 

“Yeah, but that’s a promise ok?” Sun smiled, hands on his hips. 

They walked down the beach together for a while in silence, Blake trying to push back memories of Beacon from her mind. It was a nice walk. The sun was setting, and the sky was colored a brilliant combination of reds and purples. She felt uneasy though. There was something in the air that was throwing her off. After three months of looking over her shoulder, she couldn’t tell if she was just being paranoid or not. 

“Sun hang on.” Blake held her hand in front of him, gesturing for him to stop. It was almost too late when she tackled him to the ground, narrowly preventing a bullet from lodging itself in his skull.

“What the hell!?” He screamed, the two of them scrambling back to their feet, drawing their weapons. 

_They’ve found me!_ Her blood was alight and her heartbeat threatened to tear her body apart.   
“Sun go back to town!” 

“I’m not leaving you by yourself!” He shot back, readying his staff. “We’re friends remember?”  
She grit her teeth together. It was strange being both thankful and angry for someone’s presence. 

“Keep moving!” She commanded, dodging forward onto the sand.   
They must be further inland, she thought to herself, gesturing for Sun to follow her into the dense palm forest in the center of the island. Another shot ran out and Blake could feel the air rush past her ear as another bullet narrowly avoided its target. 

Panic and dread followed the two as they tried to make their way through the forest, moving around as much as possible. It was slow going, despite their immense speed, due to the density of the trees and rocks around them. 

“Where do you think they are?” Sun asked, clearly trying and failing somewhat to keep calm. 

“The shots are coming from this way,” Blake began, perking her cat ears up in an attempt to locate the assassin sooner. “Let’s hurry!” 

He followed closely after, letting Blake take the lead. Bullets flew through the forest, one clipping Sun in his shoulder, thankfully missing anything vital. His aura would ensure that he was still capable of fighting. They came to a part of the forest where the trees stretched to the sky, a small black robed figure resting against the treeline. 

“There!” Blake fired her pistol at the figure, grimacing as whoever the hell it was dodged her attack. 

“I’ve got it!” Sun leapt to intercept the figure, bringing his staff to clash against the operative’s sniper rifle. Their weapon transformed into a halberd, the gun shaft shifting downward to switch places with a large blade. 

Sun spun backward, throwing his staff into the air as he tried to land a few kicks against their masked foe, catching the staff as it fell back to earth to continue the onslaught. Blake came up from behind, planning on swinging her weapon around the operative’s legs to knock them off balance. 

“Watch out Blake!” Sun shouted, bracing himself against their attacker. She spun around backwards, managing to block an attack from a second foe at the last second. Her eyes widened as she realized who it was.

“Illia?!”  
\-----

_“That was awesome!” Yang held up her hand for a high five. Blake rolled her eyes with a smile and followed through, the two performing an excellent high five. They’d just finished the first round of the tournament with a bang, team RWBY taking home a decisive victory. It made her feel great. No one was good enough to stand up to their team when the four of them were working together. She was a bit more worried about the doubles matches, always feeling less comfortable when they weren’t fighting alongside each other, but she was confident that her team had a solid chance of taking home the gold._

_“You really killed it out there Blake.” Yang said with a thumbs up, grinning from ear to ear. “‘Bumblebee’ is so much fun!”_

_“I never thought I’d get to throw you around like that when we first met.” Blake chuckled, thinking about their team attack that Ruby had named._

_“I’m glad you’re watching my back.”_

_“Me too.” Yang responded. Things had gone back to normal between them. Neither of them ever brought up Yang’s feelings that she’d poured out that night. It wasn’t like they had a lot of time to discuss it anyways. Weiss had them all training nonstop for the tournament. Blake welcomed the distraction. Even if they didn’t talk about it, it was hard for her to get rid of the memory._

_“C’mon guys!” Ruby called out, waving them towards the exit. “They’re gonna start the next match soon and I want something to eat!”  
“Of course that’s the first thing you think of.” Weiss huffed, struggling to stifle her own laughter. _

_“There’s so much amazing food set up in town, how can you not want some?”_

_Yang laughed and grabbed Blake’s hand, intending to march on over to the other two members of their team. Blake snatched her hand back quickly, startled by the touch, face flushed red._

_“Oh… sorry Blake.” Yang tried to smile but it was obvious she’d been hurt._

_“It’s fine.” Blake responded, touching her hand gingerly. “L-let’s go eat. Ruby wasn’t kidding about all the great food.”_

_She felt like an idiot. Was Yang as conflicted about what had happened as she was? There was no way to know without asking. She remembered all the times they’d shared. All the looks and all the touches and winks that suddenly seemed different. It was no good though. Yang was a human. They were partners._

_That, and Blake herself was no good. Yang deserved someone better._

\-----

Yang didn’t know where she was going. She didn’t know where she was and she didn’t know how much longer she could keep walking. After Raven and her tribe left her, she’d laid on the ground for a while, trying to let her aura heal her wounds. Her whole body ached and her thoughts were muddled. Her vision made her feel like she was looking at the world through a screen. 

She thought back to her dream. _Keep going._  
The bleeding from the wound on her arm had stopped, but red stained almost every part of her. It was a gross looking wound. Who knew if it would heal properly? Her aura wasn’t what it used to be. No part of her was what it used to be. 

_Keep going._ Her feet were starting to drag through the dirt of the forest as the sun set. She didn’t know what she would do once the sun set. Grimm were more active at night and she’d probably already used up all her luck having not run into one so far. 

Keep going? For who? She’d never catch up to Ruby now. Not with Raven gone. She was lost and abandoned once again. Should she keep going for herself? She had no reason to. Everything she cared about was a far off dream. 

She could just lay down. Then she’d die and all of this would be gone. No more pain, no more nightmares, no more trying. Yang stopped in her tracks. It would be so much easier. She couldn’t even cry anymore. 

Yang fell down. Who had she ever been kidding? She wasn’t good. She never was. She wasn’t courageous like Ruby, Weiss, or Blake, or any of her other friends. Her mom was a monster. She’d spent so much of her life wanting to find her and when she finally had she’d almost gotten killed by her. 

“I’m sorry Weiss.” She mumbled to no one. “I’m so sorry Ruby.”

She chuckled. “Fuck you Blake.”

She started laughing and she didn’t know why. “Fuck you!”   
Yang repeated it over and over again, a litany of swears and anger ringing out loudly in the forest. Trees rustled nearby. All of the noise had attracted Grimm, unsurprisingly. She kept laughing. Everything was insane. The whole world was just shit. 

She stood back up and flexed her fingers, looking at the creeps that had surrounded her. They were such weak Grimm. She attacked one. She ripped it apart with her metal arm and she threw herself at another. And another. The air was full of the sickening sound of flesh being ripped asunder. She felt alive. It felt good. 

\-----

_“You believe me, right Blake?”_

_She was silent._

_Her partner’s voice was full of desperation and sadness, to the point of bursting. Blake kept her knees close to her, feeling the eyes of her team resting on her due to her silence.  
She had seen it. Yang breaking Mercury’s leg in front of a stadium full of people. Yang Xiao Long, the person closest to her in the world. She wasn’t the type of person to hurt someone like that._

_Right?_

_She heard Ruby and Weiss admonish her, and she saw the tears in Yang’s eyes. And it hurt to see and hear. But she felt cold after what she had seen. She felt cold because it made her think of Adam. Adam, her former partner, her former lover, who had scarred her permanently. Someone who she thought she could trust with anything, someone she loved. Someone who had slowly turned into a monster. Could Yang be the same way?_

_“I want to believe you.” She could hear Yang choke on her tears and the disbelief from her team. Yang said it was fake. That Mercury attacked her first. They had all seen what had happened, and the footage from the scene. Blake wanted to scream when she saw the guards arrest her partner. She couldn’t believe that Yang would do such a thing._

_“... Blake?” Yang’s voice was so weak._

_“What’s that supposed to mean?!” Weiss shouted, anger dripping from her voice. Ruby looked desperate and sad, confused and helpless. Yang looked like Blake had just stabbed her._

_“Yang would never do something like that!” Weiss continued, standing up from her spot on the bed._

_Blake wanted to bury herself under her bed covers. She knew that. But she had thought that exact same thought when Adam began to change._

_“I had someone… very dear to me change once.” Blake trained her eyes on the ground, unable to look her teammates in the eyes._

_“It wasn’t all of a sudden. It was overtime but,” She took a deep breath. “He changed. By the time it was done I couldn’t recognize him anymore.”_

_She could hear words form and die in the mouths of her teammates. Blake winced. She didn’t like talking about Adam. It made her old wounds hurt, physical and mental._

_Blake looked at Yang. Their eyes met and Blake’s heart sank. She thought her eyes were so beautiful. She loved that gorgeous purple shade and the red that burned like the sun. They never should have been full of tears like they were now. She was terrified. She didn’t want Yang to change._

_“But you’re not like that, and you’ve never done something like this before.” Blake swallowed her fear._

_“If… you can look me in the eyes and tell me that you truly didn’t do it, I’ll believe you.”_

_Yang sniffed, brushing back tears from her eyes. She looked Blake squarely in the eyes._

_“I saw him attack me. So I attacked back.” Her voice was weak, but Blake knew she was telling the truth._

_“Ok then.” Blake gave a small smile. “I trust you.”_

_“I think I’d like to be alone for a while.” Yang gave herself a small hug. Blake didn’t blame her. None of them knew how they would deal with the aftermath of the situation. The fight had been broadcast on TV all around the world. Everyone thought she was a monster._

_“We’ll get out for a while then.” Blake stood up, sharing a look with Weiss and Ruby. Yang looked miserable. The most weak and vulnerable Blake had ever seen her. She wanted to hold her partner but she knew she couldn’t. She wanted to make everything better but she knew she couldn’t._

_It hurt._

\-----

“You shouldn’t have come back!” Illia shouted at her, moving back from her attack on Blake. 

“What’s going on Illia?” Blake asked, grip tight on Gambol Shroud. 

“You know her!?” Sun managed to force back the White Fang member with the rifle-halberd, regrouping with Blake. 

Illia grit her teeth, using her powers as a chameleon faunus to blend into the shadows.   
“Dammit,” Blake hissed under her breath, pressing her back to Sun. 

“What’s the plan?” Sun gripped his staff, watching as the other White Fang operative charged at them, halberd raised high. 

“We can’t bring them back to town.” Blake said, resolute in her decision. She would not drag her demons into her parents’ lives. She would deal with this on her own. 

“Right.” Sun dived forward and intercepted the masked operative, collapsing his staff and raining down a hail of pistol fire. Blake tried to listen. Tried to listen with her heightened hearing for Illia. She had to be somewhere nearby. 

_There!_ She flung Gambol Shroud at the shadows, grimacing as Illia dodged her attack by a hair. The Chameleon’s stealth was shattered though and Blake had no intention of letting her get away. She needed to know how much the Fang knew about her. Then she could run away again. 

Her blade landed in the bark of a palm tree and Blake pulled on the ribbon that connected her weapon, yanking herself towards Illia. The two collided, Blake tackling her former friend down onto the ground. She grabbed her hands and bound her as quickly as she could with Gambol Shroud. It was a little too easy. Was Illia fighting back with all her strength. 

“What are you doing here?” Blake hissed, keeping her weight pressed down on Illia. 

“He’s after you.” The White Fang member grunted, trying to squirm her way out. 

Blake fought down the urge to puke. 

“They’re in Mistral, if it goes well he’ll find you Blake.” Illia whispered. “This is a warning.”

No. He couldn’t find her, not here. Not in her home, with her parents. She knew what Adam had become; he would kill them if given the chance, just to hurt her. 

“What’s going on in Mistral?!” Blake couldn’t keep her voice down, throat already hoarse from trying not to burst into tears at the news. “Tell me?” 

Illia laughed sadly. “Shouldn’t you be helping your friend?”

_Shit!_ Blake swore mentally, looking up at Sun. His fight was going south fast. He needed help. She took a final look at her former friend before taking off to help Sun. 

The monkey faunus struggled against his opponent. Whoever they were, the masked White Fang operative held an immense amount of raw strength. Sun’s quick, light hits weren’t making much of a dent. With a powerful blow, the Fang operative knocked Sun’s staff out of his hands, and brought his halberd down against Sun’s head. 

“No, get away from him!” Blake shouted, diving in against their enemy. She raised her blade high, intending on stabbing it right through the operative’s chest. Sun reeled from the attack, hands covering his face as blood spurted out from between his fingers. 

Her blade found its way into his shoulder, before he managed to beat her away. She landed nearby Sun, blood feeling heavy and hot like lava. This only just confirmed what she always knew. Everyone close to her was in danger. The Fang would never stop. 

The powerful operative moved in to continue the assault, before Illia hopped in front of him. She whispered something to him and he stopped his attack, placing his weapon back on his shoulder. 

Illia’s colors changed to a despondent blue and green as she looked upon her old friend.   
“They’re coming for you Blake.”

Blake growled at Illia as she left, before rushing over to Sun’s side. He was groaning in pain, though he had managed to stay conscious. Swears left his lips as he pawed at the wound on his face, Blake trying to peel his hands away so she could take a closer look. 

There was a large cut, a diagonal slash across his face.   
“No, no!” Blake yelled, looking at the injury Sun had suffered. 

“It’ll be ok, I’ll get you back, it’ll be ok…” She picked him up and slung him over her shoulder, running as fast as she could back to her house.


	14. Chapter 14

_Everything was falling._

_There were Grimm and White Fang everywhere, indiscriminately attacking students and civilians. The fires felt hot, even to Yang. She ran through the chaos, heart lifting slightly as she found Weiss and many of her other friends. It sank just as quickly as she noticed that Blake and Ruby weren’t there with them._

_“Weiss!” Yang shouted, pulling her exhausted friend into a hug. The smaller girl grunted in surprise, but returned the hug as best she could._

_“I’m so glad you’re ok.” Yang said. “I was scared for everyone when Blake called.”_

_“Barely.” Weiss sighed. She looked a little worse for wear. “I’m glad you made it here ok. We worried. But I see they were no match for you as usual…”_

_Yang let out a weak laugh. Of course they weren’t. She could handle anything, any situation. Everything would be fine. Everyone would be safe._

_“Weiss, where’s Ruby?” Yang asked, mood quickly sinking as she realized her sister wasn’t anywhere to be found._

_“I’m not sure.” Weiss winced, pain crossing her features. “I’m sure she’s ok but she didn’t come with the rest of us from the arena… “_

_She swallowed a lump in her throat. “She boarded that airship.”_

_“What!?” Yang shouted, clenching her fists as she turned her gaze to the sky._

_Please Ruby, be safe. Yang thought to herself. Everything would be ok. Everything would be fine._

_“What about Blake?” She continued. Even if she couldn’t go after her sister, she still needed to know that everyone was ok. Especially Blake. She wanted her to be safe._

_“We split up.” Weiss responded with a cough. She looked worried. “Honestly… she was supposed to be back by now.”_

_“I’ll go find her.” Yang said almost immediately. Sheer force of will prevented her from imagining the worst about both Blake and her sister._

_She ran away from her friends before they could tell her to stop. Ruby was too far for her to help, but she could still find Blake. Yang shouted her name over and over again as she ran through the wreckage. It was horrible. The sight of the school in ruins was enough to make her puke._

_Yang pushed down the urge though, trying to keep her mind focused on finding Blake. She was sure she would find her. Blake would be ok. She’d be safe._

\-----

Raven was confronted with a very angry dog. She’d almost forgotten about Zwei, the plucky little corgi that had followed after Yang. It barked and growled at her, as though it were asking where its master had gone. She tried to ignore it for the most part, pacing around the campsite that she and Yang had been at. 

It’s fine. Raven told herself. It didn’t matter what had happened. If anything, it was a good thing. She’d been coming to enjoy having Yang around. 

Zwei continued barking. She glared at the corgi, quickly growing irritated with the sound. 

“What?” Raven hissed, chastising herself for talking to a dog. Zwei’s beady little eyes stared her down. 

She sighed and continued walking around the campsite. Taiyang and Summer would have screamed at her. It was hard to think of what Tai would even say. Yang was their daughter, even though Raven acted like she wasn’t. Summer was her mother, despite what blood said. If she had been around none of this would have happened in the first place.

The dog was incessant. Raven groaned and opened up a portal, intending to travel back to her tribe. Much to her dismay, the dog bolted for the portal and jumped in before she could. She lunged after the corgi, following after as fast as she could. 

\-----

_She couldn’t find Blake. Where was she? Where was her partner? Yang shouted her name over and over again, calling out for the faunus. She was so worried. Her chest felt like a massive stone had been placed over it._

_She struck another Grimm down, Ember Cecilia firing off in a brilliant flash of light. Every Grimm she encountered met the same fate, bursting into clouds of black ash. It happened again and again, dozens of monsters falling to her first in her desperate search._

_Yang approached the cafeteria, or what was left of it. The building had been hit particularly hard, chunks of marble and concrete littering the ground around it._

_“Blake!” She called out again, hoping that she would finally have a response._

_The answer was Blake’s cry of agony. Yang whipped around, eyes turning the brightest shade of red, gazing upon the monster who would dare hurt her partner. His sword rested in her abdomen, blood oozing out of her stomach as she reached out to Yang._

_Blake mouthed something Yang couldn’t register. Her mind was overloaded with one single thought._

_“Get away from her!” She screamed so loudly she could feel her vocal chords tearing. Not her. Not Blake. Her shotguns fired off and she launched herself at the demon, the monster, who would dare hurt Blake. She would kill him. Her mind flood itself with images of her fist sticking out of his chest._

_He drew his sword and everything ended._

_Suddenly._

_She was supposed to be invincible._

\-----

Blake and her family were with Sun in their central foyer. He chuckled as he accepted a cup of tea from her mother, bandages covering his nose. The attack hadn’t been fatal, but it would leave a scar. 

It made her tense. He seemed ok. Her family seemed ok. Neither her nor Sun had had a chance to explain what had happened, yet her parents had been so willing to take them in and nurse their wounds. 

Her blood boiled. 

“The tea will help.” Kali said with a smile, the monkey faunus flashing a thumbs up in response. 

“And the scar will look good.” Ghira said with a grunt, trying in his own way to help. 

“Chicks dig scars.” Sun laughed, his tone somewhat nasally due to his injury. 

This was too much.

“How can you all be so calm!?” Blake stood up and shouted. She felt angry and desperate.  
“We could have died! He could have died because of me!” 

They all looked at her, surprised by her sudden outburst. 

“The White Fang are after me, they’re here because of me!” She felt tears form at the base of her eyes despite her efforts to fight them off. 

“This is why I left!”

The three of them were silent, unsure of what to say. 

“My team- my friends! I loved them more than I thought I could love anyone!”  
Her face grew wet with tears. 

“Ruby, Weiss… Yang!” Emotions burst out from her, the feelings having been crushed by denial and regret for far too long. 

“They should hate me. I’m bad. I’m no good.” She cradled herself in her arms. “I hope she hates me.”

“Blake,” Her father began as she averted her tear soaked eyes away from him.  
“You’re not bad.You’re strong. Don’t lose sight of that.”

“That’s a lie.” She cried. “Today was just more proof. It’s dangerous to be around me.”

“Who cares?” Sun said, glaring at her. “I told you earlier, it’s our choice.”

Her mother stood up and pulled her into a hug. “I know it hurts honey. I know it probably hurts more than I can understand.”

Kali smiled. “But we are here for you, regardless of what that may bring. You’re our daughter. We love you more than you can possibly imagine. 

Blake sniffled and choked. Everything was so hard. Everyday had been so hard after what had happened. She had opened herself up and unleashed a torrent of misery on the people closest to her. 

“Pushing yourself away like this… it hurts a lot more than my face y’know.” Sun tried to wiggle his nose, wincing in pain at the motion. “Blake you can’t… you can’t keep running away I think. It’ll just hurt you and us.”

Ghira smiled. “A surprisingly smart comment, coming from you.”  
He rose up, his huge form filling up the room. “If the Fang think they can hurt my daughter, think they can hurt anyone else, then I will take the fight to them.”

Concern flashed across Kali’s face before being replaced with pride. “Of course. We’ll stand by you Blake."

Sun nodded in agreement. “I don’t really know what that means, but count me in."

Blake couldn’t help but smile, even though she couldn’t stop herself from crying. She didn’t deserve this kindness. 

Maybe they were right though. Maybe it was time to stop running. The thought terrified her and chilled her blood. The White Fang represented everything she hated about herself. They represented pain and anger. They represented Adam. Her weakness. 

“I…” She began, trying to steady her voice. “I want to fight back. I wish I could. But I’m not strong enough.” 

She certainly hadn’t been strong enough to protect Yang. 

“But you’re not alone.” Ghira and Kali hugged her. 

“I’m so scared.” The faunus hugged her parents back, voice trembling. “I don’t know what to do.”

“Whatever happens,” Kali said warmly. “You won’t go through it alone. Not anymore.” 

“Or ever again.” Sun added, giving the family their space but still providing support. 

All their love made her believe that that could be true. 

\-----

_She awoke to the feeling of pins and needles in her arm._

_It was a weird feeling. It was a feeling that you weren’t ever supposed to feel._

_Right?_

_Her eyes fluttered open, taking a few blinks to register anything. It was really white, she remembered. The smell of chemicals was overwhelming. She looked down at her arm, where the pain was. It wasn’t actually there. It was gone. IV’s ran from a stump into bags of medicine, sedative, painkillers. There was so much blood. Surgical tools were scattered about on the nearby tables._

_All of a sudden she remembered everything._

_“Blake!” She screamed, throat already raw from what had happened earlier. It was unbelievable, everything rushing back to her. Her arm screamed in pain, despite any amount of painkillers they could have possibly injected into her._

_There he was. A red haired demon, staring her down as he smugly lorded over Blake, gazing at her as though he were a god. As though he had every right to strike and hurt her. Yang wanted to kill him. Kill him for what he had done to Blake. Kill him._

_The people around her were all clad in white though. Everything seemed so… sanitary. Where was she?_

_It didn’t matter though. She ripped the IV’s out and nearly fell off of the bed she was on. Yang could hear people shouting, calling for more help, calling for more sedative._

_“Quick, hold her down!” She heard them cry. People tried to grab her and she fought them off. She reached the door and kicked it down, not even bothering with the handle._

_She was somewhere different, but where was Blake? Where was that disgusting person that hurt her? Her partner had to be close by. She had to be ok._

_Right?_

_“Blake!” She shouted, eyes frantically searching for any sign, for amber eyes, for a big black bow. Someone tackled her. Yang fell to the ground but she didn’t really register it. Her eyes hurt. The pure white of the hallway stung and felt blinding._

_“Yang, calm down!” It sounded like Sun. She thought she could hear Weiss too._

_It didn’t matter though. Where was Blake? She was in trouble. That monster was still out there._

_Fire burst around her as she forced her way out, running, scrambling towards the doors in front of her. Her friends were calling out to her but she ignored them._

_“Blake where are you?!” Her throat hurt. She had to hurry though. There wasn’t any time to waste. More doors, more time she didn’t have to waste. She plowed through the halls like a tank, a monster with blood red eyes. Flames trailed after her as she ran. It didn't matter how much pain she was in._

_She dove pushed through the front doors of the hospital, a group of doctors and friends following after her. Her eyes darted around the landscape, searching for anything sign, any beacon of hope. The shattered moon looked beautiful._

_They tackled her to the ground again. She flailed against them, kicking and screaming._

_“Where is she!?_

_“Where’s Blake?_

_“Tell me!_

_Why wouldn’t they say anything? What was wrong? Where was she? She had to be ok of course. Everything had to be fine. Her eyes rested on her arm again, the wound reopening from her violent flailing. Blood dripped onto the ground as she felt a needle dip into her neck._

_Why wouldn’t they say anything?_

\-----

Blake leaned against the balcony, gazing out over the forest and city, over her home. It felt like someone had violated her own sanctuary. Even Menagerie wasn’t safe for her anymore. She had been mulling over what her parents and Sun had talked about for the better part of an hour. 

What was she supposed to do? 

Her dad wanted to fight back. Years of watching the Fang twist the ideals he used to hold dear and hurting his daughter had taken their toll on the man. No longer did he want to be beholden or associated with an organization of terror. Her mother felt the same way. Sun simply wanted to help. 

It was a terrifying thought. It made her body freeze up and her mind go blank. She cradled herself in her arms, goosebumps rising from the cold night air. Blake always felt cold these days it seemed. 

They believed in her. Her father and mother said they were proud of her and their faces betrayed no lies. Sun had always thought she was strong. Yang had told her she was one of the strongest people she’d ever met. Just thinking about her partner made her feel a bit warmer inside. 

“Maybe you’re all right.” She mumbled to herself, finally letting a smile slip onto her face. She didn’t deserve the amazing people who surrounded her, not when she herself was an unlucky beacon. But she didn’t want to let them down anymore. 

“We’ll bring the fight to them.” Blake looked up at the shattered moon in the sky. The white light bathed the island in a cool glow. “I’ll take back what they stole.”

She brushed a tear away from her eyes. Would her team be proud of her? 

“Hey Blake.” Sun’s voice came into earshot. She turned around to see her monkey friend approaching her, holding a cup of tea in his tail. 

“It’s cold out here. I thought you uh, could use something warm.” His tail handed the mug to her.  
She chuckled at the sight and gladly took the cup, letting the earthy aroma of green tea calm her nerves. 

“Thanks Sun.” 

“Yeah, I am pretty great.” 

She rolled her eyes and took a sip of her drink, gazing back out onto the landscape. Sun fidgeted awkwardly, not hiding his desire to talk very well. 

“I think I’m in a bit over my head.” He finally said, hopping up onto the railing and letting his legs sway back and forth in the open air. “I know I said it before but… I mean I know I’m not like you Blake. I’m not cool like you, I’m just not that strong.”

She looked at him, unsure of where he was going with this. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m not the greatest friend in the world.” He scratched the back of his head. “But I’m gonna try. I don’t know what you wanna do but whatever it is I’m still behind you, one hundred percent.”

“I was angry when you first followed me.” Blake began, looking over at her friend.  
“But… I really am glad you’re here Sun. It means a lot that you would try to help me like this.”

“It’s nothing really.” His feet continued to sway back and forth. The bandages on his face would need to be changed again soon.

“I really like you Blake.” Red colored his cheeks. “Like uh, a lot.”

Oh no. Blake didn’t want to get into this. 

“Sun I-”

“It’s ok, let me finish.” He sighed, taking in a deep breath. “I know you don’t feel the same way.”

Sun looked at her. “It was pretty clear to me how you felt about Yang. And how she felt about you.”

Blake choked on whatever she was planning on saying. She hadn’t anticipated Sun bringing this up. 

“If you want to… we can go after her. Try to find her.” He hopped back of the railing, wiggling his injured nose. “I’m a pretty good wingman I think. ”

She had thought about it. Thought about trying to find her team. She missed them so much it felt like a piece of her was missing. 

“I don’t know where they are.” Blake finally responded, averting her gaze. It was an excuse, but a good one. She had no idea where to even begin.

“Weiss is in Atlas.” Sun quickly chirped in. His mood dropped just as quickly. “The last time I saw Yang and Ruby was… in the hospital. I don’t know where they are now.”

“I can’t Sun.” She’d gotten used to her eyes stinging from tears. “They wouldn’t take me back. I think now I should… try to forget them.”

“That’s easier said than done.” He grimaced. “But like I said. Wherever you decide to go, I’m in.”

They remained on the roof for a while, Blake quietly sipping her tea as Sun waited around in silence. 

“Mistral.” She finally said, working up to courage to divulge what Illia had told her.

“Hm? What about it?”

“We’re going to Mistral.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was kind of slow going getting here but we're off! Or Blake is at least. I don't have much time to proof read and beta these chapters anymore so let me know if there's typos or something anywhere. Leave a comment if you feel so inclined! I love reading them 10/10


	15. Chapter 15

Keep going keep going keep going keep going keep going

She knew she should have felt hungry and thirsty. Exhausted. Nothing really registered.  
It’d been a couple of days. Or had it? There had been a lot of Grimm. A lot of destruction.  
It was fine though. She was strong so it was fine. 

Keep going keep going keep going keep going keep going

She remembered pulling a red wagon in the woods, carting her sister off on some incredibly misinformed and dangerous adventure. After Summer died she felt empty. Finding her mother gave her something to direct her anger towards. A way to get rid of the emptiness. 

“It’s ok Ruby, not much longer.” She mumbled to herself. “We’ll get there soon.”  
Her eyes were red from lack of sleep, not of anger. Every once in awhile, she got the urge to sleep. Just a few minutes on the ground. Just a few. 

Yang knew she was delirious. Even that much was clear to her now. But she had to keep going.

Right?

There were more Grimm. Which ones were it this time? She’d already lost count of how many she’d killed up until this point. She and Ruby would fight Grimm together, with a smile on their face. It was weird being alone. She missed her team. 

Her metal fist collided with the hard skull of a Boarbtusk. Bone shattered and gore splattered.  
She remembered one time she made a bad joke about the Grimm during a mission. Everyone had groaned about it but Blake had actually laughed. It was the first the time the faunus had laughed at one of her puns. 

She could hear something. It sounded like gunshots. She pushed past another piggy and led herself to where the sound was coming from. 

It was red. It was familiar. Her scythe had scarred and damaged but it was her. Her sister, Jaune, Ren, and Nora were fighting together, against the same horde of Grimm she’d encountered.

“Oh. We made it Ruby.” She laughed, collapsing down onto the ground, body no longer able to take it. 

“Who is that?” Ren shouted, taking out a Boarbtusk with a flash of bullets. 

“I’ll check it out!” Jaune responded, scurrying over to the fallen figure. His eyes widened as he realized who it was. He crouched down, checking her pulse, breathing a short sigh of relief when he realized Yang was still with them. 

“Ruby, get over here now!” He realized he had started crying. “You’re gonna want to see this!”

Ruby nodded and rushed over in a burst of rose petals. The emotions that came over her upon seeing her sister were overwhelming. She dropped her weapon to the ground and grasped her sister’s hands, weeping and smiling all at the same time. 

“Yang!” She had missed her so, so much. She grasped her hand tightly, fearful that if she let go she’d lose her older sister again. There were so many questions, but they could all wait. 

\-----

Raven watched from afar, holding Zwei by the collar as Ruby and her group found Yang in the midst of their battle. She could hardly believe it. What kind of otherworldly luck did it take for such a thing to happen? She was no stranger to destiny and fate. 

She’d sent her birds after the girl a day after she’d left Yang in the village. She never should have left her there. Her emotions had gotten the better of her, like those of a child. 

The woman couldn’t help but smile, just a little bit as the former students finished off the rest of the Grimm, Yang’s sister crouched over her and bawling her eyes out, a confused mess of emotions. It made her a bit jealous really. It made her long for team STRQ again. 

Yang was alive though. It didn’t excuse Raven’s actions, but her daughter was still alive. Alive and now with a group of people that would be far better to her than she ever could have been. 

“Get out of here.” Raven set Zwei on the ground, the dog starting to head for its family before turning its head back to Raven. 

“I’m not going.” She said, wondering why she was talking to a dog. It paused for another moment before giving a short bark and barreling towards the group of students. 

This was better. If she could help it, she would never encounter Yang again. Her child deserved far, far better than Raven. Everything that had recently happened was simply proof of that. 

“Goodbye Yang.”

\-----

“Are you sure about this Blake?” Ghira grasped his daughter’s shoulder. He looked even more intimidating than usual, his old, massive greatsword strapped to his back. Blake’s family and Sun stood around her, the group waiting to board the ship to Anima. He’d placed a trusted friend in charge of Menagerie while he was gone. Dealing with the Fang was paramount to the island’s permanent safety and existence. It would be ok if he left to keep his home safe for a short while. 

“Yeah.” She responded. Even though she was terrified, even though she was far from sure about things, there was no room for doubt. She had to be strong for them. The plan was simple enough; get to Mistral, then start investigating the Fang presence there. Ghira and Kali had a few leads there were interested in pursuing. Her parents were confident they could discover what was going on. 

The captain of the boat, the same friendly old man she had met on her trip back home called them on board. 

“Good to see you again miss.” He smiled at her, extending his hand. 

She grasped his and smiled right back at him. “Likewise captain.”

“Hey, don’t forget me!” Sun laughed, patting the captain on the back.

“Don’t you owe me money for stowing away?” The older man smirked. Sun flashed a smile and bolted down the deck of the ship. He’d told Blake about how much he wanted to sit on the ‘pole thingy on the front’ during the trip. Her father groaned and her mother laughed. She had trouble stifling a chuckle herself. It seemed weird to be having as much fun as they were considering the gravity of the situation. 

It felt good though. It felt like maybe she could get away from the darkness she’d been overwhelmed by recently. 

“I’m so excited to go to Mistral.” Her Kali said, grasping onto her husband’s giant arms. “Remember that one summer we spent together there?”

Ghira turned far redder than Blake had thought he could. “Dear!”

Kali chuckled and made her way down the bow. “It’s been awhile since I traveled out of Menagerie. I’ll try to find us the best view.”

Ghira gave an exasperated sigh, Blake letting a hearty laugh out. 

“You’ll like it there Blake.” Ghira began, recovering his composure. The father and daughter strolled across the ship together, listening to Sun start to whoop and hollar once the boat finally left port. 

“Mistral is a great hub of art. Do you still draw?” 

Blake blushed. Her parents were always her biggest fans when it came to her drawings. She didn’t think she was that good, but her team had also praised her artwork. Ruby always asked her to draw her. 

“Sometimes,” She shrugged. “I haven’t drawn anything since…”

Her father held up his hand to pause her, and dug something out of the pack he had strapped to his side. The man was strong enough to essentially single handedly carry the entire group’s provisions. It was a sketch pad and a set of pencils. 

“Here. To help you pass the time.” Blake gingerly took the supplies and held them close to her chest. Could anyone possibly ask for a better father?

“Thank you.” She responded, still surprised at the gesture. 

He smiled that big, fatherly grin. “I’ll go find your mother. She can be quite the troublemaker sometimes. I’ll make sure your friend Sun doesn’t get into any trouble either. You deserve some time to yourself.”

Ghira gave her a pat on the back before leaving. Blake sighed, ears twitching as she tried to relax in the silence. The sound of the ocean was soothing and wonderful. Salty air nipped at her nose, cool and refreshing. 

For the first time in months she finally felt like she had hope. Like she had direction. She found a shady spot on the boat and sat down, opening up the sketchpad her father had gotten her. Grabbing a pencil, she started sketching, sketching the first thing that came to mind. A rose, a snowflake, and a burning heart.

It felt good to draw the emblems. Cathartic. The pencil made her remember all the times she considered writing to her team. Writing to Patch, writing to Atlas. Every time she considered it she talked herself out of it. She didn’t know what she could possibly say to any of them.  
\-----

Yang groaned. She felt like she needed to sleep for seven more years.  
“Five more minutes....” She mumbled, the words coming out in a jumbled slur. 

“Yang!” She was not prepared for having the life squeezed out of her so early in the morning. 

“Wh-”

“You’re awake! You’re awake!” 

It took her a moment to register what was happening. She would recognize that voice anywhere. Her sister was holding her, tears streaming down her face, red hair an unkempt mess. As soon as she recognized her Yang couldn’t help but cry too. 

“Ruby!” She squeezed her back tightly, the two finally reunited after months apart. Her heart felt warm and light, overflowing with joy and happiness. Yang had been terrified that she would never see her sister again, but here she was. Alive. She felt like she was dreaming. If she was, she didn’t want to wake up. It was far too good. 

“Yang I was so worried!” Ruby pulled back, taking in awkward gasps of air through her tears. “You slept for two days straight!” 

“You know me.” Yang laughed, surprised at how hoarse her voice was. “Heavy sleeper.”  
The firecracker didn’t even want to know what she looked or smelled like. It had been way too long since her last shower. 

She looked down at her arm, noticing that someone had taken the prosthetic off. She couldn’t help but wince at the sight of it. 

“Oh, uh, I took it off.” Ruby said, pointing over to a table in the corner of the room they were in. Her metal limb rested looking better than ever, as though a certain red head had done maintenance on it. 

“Yang, it’s really cool. Super cool!” Her sister’s smile was so sweet it could probably kill. 

“I can’t believe you’re really here.” Ruby pulled her back into another hug. Yang sniffled a bit.

“I can’t believe it either.”

“What are you doing here Yang?” Her younger sister wiped her nose and eyes, trying to restore a bit of decorum. Yang looked her over. It was definitely still Ruby, but she seemed different. She seemed older. Her eyes seemed heavier. Darker. 

It made her feel sad for some reason. 

“I’m not really sure.” Yang responded after a moment. “I um, got lost?”  
She debated telling Ruby everything that had happened with Raven. How she’d been abandoned again and nearly lost herself. She would tell her later. For now she just wanted to enjoy being with her family again. 

“You got… lost?” Ruby snorted. “It’s ok, we can talk about it later.”  
The younger girl smiled and fidgeted, not sure of how to react to finally seeing her sister again. 

“Can I get you something? Water? Cookies? We can’t bake any, but I’m sure there’s some we can get in town.”

Yang laughed. Normally she definitely wanted cookies, but just a glass of water sounded far better at the moment. 

“Water’s good.” She responded, tentatively flexing the fingers on her left hand. Her fist had been bandaged up, as well as a couple spots on her torso, she noted. She’d have to thank whoever had taken the time to patch her up later. 

Ruby hopped to her feet, giving a mock salute before a softer expression returned to her features. “I’ll be right back Yang.”

Her sister moved to the door, hand resting on the handle as she turned back to her sister again.  
“I love you Yang.”

Yang remembered how much she regretted not saying those words back to her sister back in patch.

“I love you too Ruby.” She felt so embarassed crying in front of her little sister.

The younger girl beamed, relishing the moment as she left the room. 

So many years she had spent trying to seem invincible in front of her sister. Things were different now. Her sister was a hero now. 

And Yang? She didn’t feel like much of anything. She wasn’t really anything. But she had made it. Somehow made it back to her sister. 

A long, long sigh escaped her mouth. It felt like her muscles were finally able to relax for the first time in forever and they needed it. She hadn’t been sure that someone could literally have every single muscle ache. Even her nose felt bad. Yang leaned into the surface of the bed, trying to will herself to just get some rest. The injury she’d received from her mother especially felt like shit. 

Ruby came back a short while later, bringing with her a bowl of soup and some water. Yang could hear the voices of Jaune, Ren, and Nora from behind the door. She wanted to reunite with them as well, but was thankful that she was able to simply be with her sister for a while. 

“It’s like a coconut curry type thing I think.” Ruby said with a smile, setting down the water and food next to Yang. “The food here is really good. We’ve only been here a few days but there’s so much stuff I want to show you.”

Yang smiled. The soup did smell good. 

“Are you ok Ruby?” She asked, rolling over awkwardly to hug her sister again. 

Ruby sniffed a bit. “Not really. But seeing you again? I’m way better than ok sis.” 

Yang squeezed her. “Same.”

“Uh, how’s dad?” Ruby asked, pulling back and looking sheepish. 

“Worried.” Yang responded. She had no idea how her father must have felt after having his other child run away as well. Ruby looked mortified. The young huntress must have felt mortified about leaving her family. 

“It’s ok though.” She sighed. “Dad will be alright, don’t worry Rubes.”

Her comment made Ruby smile slightly. It made Yang feel good. She’d missed watching her sister smile. 

“Uncle Qrow is here too.” Ruby said, looking outside the window. “He saved us earlier. He got hurt but he’s ok now. We’re all ok. I mean y’know, as good as we can be...”

Qrow had followed Ruby? Yang felt a weird combination of anger and relief well up inside her. Why hadn’t her Uncle brought Taiyang along? Or brought Ruby back home? Their dad didn’t know, but Yang knew that Qrow was one of the reasons Ruby had sought out Mistral in the first place 

Yang could tell Ruby was holding something back. It hurt, watching her sister do the same thing she had done so many times herself in their youth. Putting on a front was exhausting.

“I have a lot of stuff to tell you.” Ruby fought back tears. “Lots.”

“It’s ok Ruby. I promise. Tell me what happened.” She had to be there for her sister again. She would never let her take on the world alone again, even though Yang felt barely strong enough to stay awake. 

“Ok.” Ruby choked. “But is it ok- ok if I just cry for a bit? Sorry sis.”

“Don’t apologize to me Rubes.” Yang said with a smile, trying hard not to cry herself. The world had been so cruel, so unbelievably cruel to both of them. Ruby certainly didn’t deserve what had happened to her. Someone so innocent, so sweet and pure should have had all the good things in life. Instead she had her life ripped from her. 

Her little sister wept, hugging her tightly. 

Things would never go back to normal again. But at least she was here for Ruby.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The fic was originally going to stop around here, right after Blake got to Menagerie, but I decided to keep going ;-;  
> Please leave a comment if you'd like, and let me know about errors or stuff like that!


	16. Chapter 16

_“What’s with these guys?!” Taiyang shouted, dodging a chain blade to the face.  
They were under attack. A simple routine mission had gone wrong. Assailants had ambushed team STRQ on a simple patrol to clear an area of Grimm. _

_Raven hadn’t seen this attack in her dreams. Things would be fine. She fought back against a masked enemy with the utmost confidence. Perhaps they were some sort of bandits? Recently they’d been hearing more and more about a group of insurgents from within the White Fang. It didn’t surprise her. The oppression of faunus wasn’t improving, despite the best efforts from protesters and idealists. Words only accomplished so much._

_She scoffed at their masks, faux grimm effigies. They were stupid. The mask of her tribe’s leader was far more intimidating. Why wear the visage of a monster if you couldn’t back it up? They were weak. It would be a simple matter for her to defeat them._

_Summer fought deftly, a speeding blur as she bounced between enemies. Raven loved watching her fight. The young woman danced across the battlefield like paint rendering a canvas. It was an amazing sight to see._

_Qrow’s blade proved effective, not deeming it necessary to use his scythe, though he was held down by a stronger pair of enemies. Things would be fine though. Everyone would be safe._

_She heard Taiyang, her lover, cry out, reeling from a brutal attack from the apparent ‘leader’ of their foes; a bulky man wielding a large chainsword. Tai was strong, using mixed martial arts to outsmart and overcome his foes. Brute force enemies like this one could give him trouble though. But it would be fine._

_No one was better than team STRQ. She didn’t think she could love anyone before she met them._

_“Tai!” Qrow yelled, still pinned down in his own fight._

_Raven growled, pushing away the masked foe attacking her and rushing to Taiyang’s side. Did these bandits really think they could hurt one of her friends? Hurt Tai?_

_She struck out against the man wielding the chainsword, red sword clashing against his blade. Tai clutched an injury on his shoulder._

_“Raven, careful!” He groaned. “He’s tougher than the others!”_

_What difference did it make? She could fight anyone. She was invincible. Her opponent was strong, but she was stronger. She pushed him back, Summer behind her checking on Tai’s wound as Qrow continued fighting as well. Most of their opponents had been dealt with now, moans of pain coming from incapacitated assailants around them. They’d take them back to Vale and interrogate them later._

_She brought out her axe in a flash of blue light and knocked her enemy down to the ground in one massive strike. He cried out, chainsword falling from his hands to the ground. She grinned, confident in her strength._

_“You think you’ve won?!” He screeched, crawling back to his knees._

_“Yeah, I do.” Raven smirked, sheathing her weapon. The rest of her team formed back together, circling around the criminals’ leader._

_“You huntsmen are the worst.” He spat on the ground. “You say you fight monsters, when humanity are the real monsters.”_

_“Humans have done monstrous things,” Summer said sadly, offering a hand to the fallen assailant. Raven narrowed her eyes. She was too kind for her own good, too often putting others before herself. “But we’re fighting to change that.”_

_“Fuck you,” The man growled, pulling a hidden knife from behind his back. He lunged at Summer, catching the woman off guard and slashing her face. She reeled back from the attack with a scream, Tai and Qrow rushing to catch her._

_“Summer!”_

_She moved on instinct. He’d hurt her family. The only people she loved._

_Raven kicked the man back down to the ground and drew her sword. It didn’t take long for her blade to separate the man’s head from his shoulders._

_“Raven stop!” Qrow shouted, though it was far too late to do anything about it. She only felt anger. How could anyone hurt her friends? The most important people in her life? She noticed that she was shaking and it hurt to breath._

_She hadn’t killed before. None of them had killed anyone before. She felt sick._

_“Raven!” Qrow grabbed her shoulders, jerking her out of her stupor. There was gore and red and bone and her team looked at her so strangely. Qrow looked so angry. Angry and sad like when they still lived with the tribe, brutal guardians that they were. Tai’s eyes were wide open, desperate, confused._

_Summer just had that look of kindness, even with a bloody injury on her face. Of pity. She was always just trying to help._  
\-----

“... Blake.” Sun’s voice called out. “Blaaaake!” 

Blake had been zoning out. Their walk through the woods to Mistral was taking a long time, longer than she had anticipated. You could only look at the same cobblestone path so many times before losing focus. 

They’d been lucky not to run into too many Grimm, which surprised Blake, considering how negative she felt about everything right now. Regardless, the monsters were no match for the four of them. 

“What?” She turned to him, raising up her hand as she yawned. 

“I’m getting signal again!” He said cheerfully, whipping out his scroll. “I got a message from my team. From Neptune!”

Blake crooked an eyebrow. While international communications had been devastated, local transmissions still had a chance of getting through. His team was probably understandably worried about him. 

“Blake, you won’t believe who they found.” Sun reduced his volume a bit, handing his scroll over to Blake. Could it be the Fang? If SSSN had a lead they could go off of, it would make their journey a lot easier. She stopped in her tracks as she read the full message.

“... Ruby?” Her blood chilled. “T-they’re there? Ruby? Jaune, Nora, Ren?”

Sun seemed disappointed by Blake’s reaction. He’d thought she’d be happy about the news. Her friends were there, in Mistral, probably missing her like crazy. Maybe even Yang was somewhere nearby. 

“I can’t meet her Sun.” Blake’s voice cracked slightly. “I can’t.”

Her parents stopped in front of the two, concern on their faces. They’d been walking ahead, reminiscing about when they used to travel more in their youth. 

“What’s wrong dear?” Kali asked, having heard Blake’s heartbroken tone. 

“You have to see her Blake. All of them.” Sun was gradually starting to lose his patience. “They miss you. I know they do.”

She looked up her parents. “It’s nothing. I’m ok.”   
Turning to Sun, she let out a sigh. “I’ll… I’ll think about it. Let’s just keep going for now.”

They were getting closer and closer. The city of Mistral was now in plain view, a gorgeous monolith with towering waterfalls echoing across the landscape. Blake would have enjoyed the view more, she thought, if she wasn’t running through dozens of scenarios, planning on what she would possibly say to one of the ones she’d left behind. 

Ruby was always so happy, so forgiving and sweet. If anyone could forgive her it would be their young leader. Betrayal wasn’t something so easily forgiven though. 

_Keep going Blake._ She thought to herself, swallowing a heavy lump in her throat. _Keep going._

\-----

“You really brought some of my clothes with you?” Yang held up an army green jacket of hers she’d been saving for a special occasion. It had a weird collar on it, but Yang always thought it looked cool. Ruby had apparently packed away the outfit when she ran away, just in case Yang ever came after them. It was incredibly sweet. 

She, Ruby, and Qrow were try to catch up a bit before she met back up with Ren, Jaune, and Nora. Some kid named Oscar was there too apparently. They had booked some lodging in a hotel through Qrow, who knew the owner somehow. Yang wasn’t about to question it too much. She was just happy to have been able to sleep for a while in an actual bed and not on the forest floor. 

“Well I mean, I thought you know, in case you ever came… and well, here you are!” Ruby shrugged, embarrassed. A day hadn’t gone by that he hoped she’d see her sister again. She wish it had been in better circumstances, but having Yang around again was like a dream come true. It was a dream come true. Yang smiled and pulled her little sister into a bear hug, ruffling her red hair. 

Qrow stood by the window, smiling at his nieces as he took a swig from his flask. It was whiskey, bad whiskey, but it was something to sip on and the burning helped him forget about the monumental task ahead of them. Oz- Oscar, was waiting for him. He always knew of the headmaster’s secret, but had hoped he would never have to see him reincarnate. Things were far worse than any of the younger huntsmen and women knew. 

And so he took another sip of whiskey. 

“It’s good to see you up and about Yang.” He said, voice gruff and full of grit as always. “... how’s the arm?” 

She flexed the metal fingers of her prosthetic as she looked at it, a forlorn expression laying across her features. Ruby looked sheepish; she hadn’t asked her sister about it yet, wanting to wait as long as possible before bringing up such a sensitive subject.

“Weird.” Yang responded, forcing a smile back on her face. She’d gotten used to smiling through anything when she was younger. “Not bad just… different.”

She laughed weakly. “I’m different.”

“But you’re still my sister.” Ruby squeezed her sister’s hand. 

“I’m glad James came through on that at least.” Qrow ran a hand through his messy hair. “You don’t deserve anything less than the best.” 

“I know. I _am_ the best after all.” Yang joked, wishing so much that that were actually true. “Anyways step out for a sec, I gotta change out of this.”

Yang gestured to the torn and bloody clothing she was still wearing from her time with Raven, whom she’d thankfully been able to avoid talking about. She wanted nothing more than to just take a shower and put something clean on. 

“Right.” He stood up, gingerly touching his abdomen before walking over to the door. Ruby looked at him, concerned. 

“I’ll see you two soon. Don’t wait up too long, your friends are dying to see you.” 

Yang glanced at Ruby after Qrow left, noting the change in her sister’s disposition. 

“He got hurt pretty bad, huh?” Yang said. She knew how much Ruby idolized their uncle; it was probably a terrible shock to see him out of commission. He and Yang took the brunt of raising her after Summer died and Taiyang fell into his depression. 

“He says he’s ok now, but I’m still worried.” Ruby traced patterns on the back of her hand. “It was poison. And it was my fault.” 

Yang could tell she was holding back tears. “H-he almost died because of me Yang.”

“And he’s still alive now ‘cause of you.” She put her left hand on Ruby’s shoulder, trying to avoid touching her with her prosthetic. 

“You’re amazing Ruby. Look at how far you’ve come.” A truly genuine smile fell on her face.   
“I always knew you were a hero. Always.”

The younger huntress sniffled a bit, unable to hide a smile from her sister. “Thanks sis. It’s been… it’s been really, really hard.”

She laughed, wiping her eyes. “Sorry to be such a crybaby.”

Yang ruffled her hair. “There’s nothing wrong with that. Cry as much as you need to.”

They hugged again before Ruby left to go downstairs where the others were waiting. Yang let out a breath and shuffled into the bathroom. Her reflection in the mirror told a long and arduous tale. She had massive bags under her eyes and looked paler than she had remembered. Cuts and bruises were all over her body. Worst of all though? Her hair was an absolute mess.

She turned on the shower and simply stood under the water for what seemed like ages. It took her a moment to realize that she had started crying again. She felt so weak. 

\-----

“Yang!” Nora jumped on her like a tiger, squeezing her so hard she thought her eyeballs might pop out. 

“H-hey Nora!” She choked out, pushing the redhead off her. “Have you been keeping her in line Ren?”

The raven haired boy sighed with a smile, giving Yang a (much gentler) hug of his own.   
“Of course. It’s good to see you again.” 

Yang grinned, punching Jaune playfully in the shoulder. “What about you blondy? My little sis told me you got everyone lost…”

“Only for a bit!” He laughed bashfully, shooting a friendly glare at Ruby who just shrugged. “But we all made it. You made it too. We should have known though honestly, I mean, I bet you’re still just as tough as ever.” 

Yang smiled. It was a forced smile, but they wouldn’t be able to tell the difference. Part of her did hope she would be that strong again; right now, she was satisfied with not having a break down in front of everyone. 

She didn’t want to admit to them that she was scared to fight with them again. Looking over at the corner of the hotel’s lobby, she saw a darker skinned boy sheepishly standing against the wall. Qrow was talking to him about something, something weird and confusing judging by the way the boy acted. 

“What’s his deal?” Yang asked, pointing a thumb at the two.   
Ruby scratched her head. “I’m not totally sure… his name is Oscar, he’s really nice! A little odd though, maybe, I don’t know. Probably not any weirder than the rest of us.”

“Your uncle found him.” Ren added, crossing his arms. He had an equally strange feeling about the boy.

Jaune looked surprisingly angry. Yang noted how much harder and rougher her classmate’s features looked. What had happened at Beacon had changed all of them; not just her. Even Nora’s bright eyes and happy smiles didn’t seem quite so convincing. 

“Just another thing he’s not telling us.” Jaune scoffed. Yang wasn't too surprised by Jaune’s reaction, but was shocked when Ruby didn’t move to defend her uncle. She just looked sheepishly at the ground. 

“T-they’re gonna stay here for a bit.” Ruby chirped, switching the topic of conversation. “We were all gonna go to Haven. Team SSSN is here! Well, Neptune at least I guess. Ren and Nora ran into him the other day in the market.”

Yang nodded. She didn’t want to reunite with the all male team, but she had vowed to follow Ruby wherever she went from now on. If JNRR… RNJR, whatever (she’d ask them later), wanted to meet with their old friends, she would follow. 

“Mistral’s really cool.” Ruby began, as they waved a quick goodbye to Qrow and Oscar. “We’ve only been here a few days, but it’s really cool! Remember when dad would tell us about it?”

Their father was originally from Mistral, according to him at least. They’d never been as kids, only taking trips to Vale from Patch. She was worried about Taiyang, though she hadn’t said anything to Ruby yet. Was he still on Patch? Had he gone to look for his daughters? 

Raven? 

Yang rolled her shoulders and flexed her fingers. None of the others had mentioned her metal arm yet, for which she was thankful. Most of it was hidden by the cuffs of her outfit, but plenty of steel was still visible. 

“I’m excited to see it.” Yang smiled, walking in tandem with her sister. They headed out of the building, the five of them heading out to reunite with more of their old friends. It felt weird to be with her old classmates again, but it felt good. It felt familiar, even though everything had changed so much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Zwei will be returning next chapter haha! Oh, and we're not quite done with Raven's story yet either...  
> Anyways, thanks so much for reading this far! I've had a ton of fun with this, and thank you for taking the plunge with me on my first fic! There's still quite a bit left to come. 
> 
> As always, leave a comment if you have any criticism or just something you'd like to say! I read all of them and I'll try to respond to you.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big reunions ahoy! Thanks for reading this far. Everyone is starting to come together now, but the story will still be focused mainly on Blake and Yang's POVs. Leave a comment or a critique if you're so inclined! I'll try to get back to you :)   
> Enjoy!

“Someone get this damn dog off of me!” Ghira roared, plucking a small pooch from off the top of his head. The animal had come out of nowhere, having leapt onto her father’s head from the top of a fruit vendor. 

They had finally made it to Mistral, though they’d nearly been turned away at the gates. Apparently a group of all heavily armed faunus was ‘suspicious’. With a little sweet talking they’d still made their way in, greeted with towering cobblestone walls and buildings, vendors lining the streets and beautiful gardens and vines growing throughout the ancient city. Crowds flooded the streets, mostly human, but a decent number of faunus were visible as well. 

It was beautiful and full of life. She could see why the city was so famed for its art. Street performers and musicians planted themselves on the corners and drew crowds, juggling fire and singing songs of love and loss.

Blake just wished the visit was under happier circumstances. She hoped that it wouldn’t be too hard to find the underground Fang presence here. People were on edge after what had happened to Vale; it would be the perfect time for the terrorists to strike. 

Sun and Kali laughed, doubled over from the goofy sight. Blake thought she recognized the dog though, which was impossible right? It definitely couldn’t be the same corgi that had terrorized her in her dorm all those months ago. 

“... Zwei?” She asked tentatively, trying to look the dog in its beady eyes. The plucky pooch barked in response, slobbery tongue happily falling out of its mouth as he stared back at Blake. 

“You know this dog?” Ghira growled, raising the dog up to his eyes level with slanted eyes. Her father had an equally low opinion of canines. “It’s not very well behaved.” 

Zwei wriggled in Ghira’s massive grip, slipping his way out and running up to Blake. The cat faunus instinctively leaned away from the dog, trying not to look too hard at the massive amount of slobber and general grossness. If Zwei was here, then Neptune’s message was probably true. Ruby was somewhere in Mistral. 

He barked at her again, tilting his little head in confusion. 

“Wait, is that Ruby’s dog?” Sun asked in surprise. Her parents mostly just seemed confused. Rightfully so really. 

“I think so.” Blake mumbled, eyeing Zwei cautiously. His little feet pitter pattered across the cobblestone as he headed down a nearby alley, barking at Blake to follow him. Or at least Blake assumed that’s what he was ‘saying’. She didn’t exactly speak dog. 

“Should we go after it?” Kali asked, one ear raised and one down. “You… seem to know it.”

“I don’t want to follow some dog.” Ghira huffed, crossing his arms. “We need to go ahead and meet my old partner. We’ll be staying at his home.” 

He glared at Sun. He’d seen the way the monkey faunus looked at his daughter. Even though he would never make those types of choices for her, he just really… didn’t like Sun. “And you will be staying with your friends, correct?”

“Yep!” Sun grinned, trying to ignore the daggers Ghira was sending his way. Blake rolled her eyes. She agreed with her father though; she wanted to get to a bed and try to relax for a while. The journey had been exhausting. 

She jumped as Zwei returned to the group, barking angrily at her, as though her were saying, ‘what’s the hold up?’ 

“Oh shut up.” Blake crouched down to look the dog in the eyes. The more he barked the more she realized that she probably didn’t have a choice in avoiding Ruby. She knew she would have to meet with Sun’s team, but that didn’t carry with it nearly the same amount of fear and regret that seeing her old team leader did. 

She tried to put on a strong face around her parents and Sun through the trip, but she was scared. Her resolve to fight the Fang was real. She wouldn’t give up on that until she was able to stop whatever Adam was planning. But reuniting with old friends? 

_I’ll just deal with it when it comes._ Blake took a deep breath. 

“Blake we should totally follow him!” Sun chimed in eagerly. She groaned. Of course Sun wanted to follow Zwei. He still didn’t really get why she didn’t want to see her old friends. 

“I know it’s kinda scary Blake, but…” He put his hands on his hips. “We’re bound to run into them eventually. Why not just bite the bullet? Ruby, Jaune, Ren, Nora? They totally want to see you again.”

Ghira sighed. “I hate to admit it, but I suppose he’s right Blake.”

“What?” She asked, disheartened by the response. 

Kali smiled gently. “You should try to go see her, your old leader, right? Your father and I can get our lodgings together.”

She jumped onto her husband’s arm and started dragging him away. “I’m hungry dear, let’s see if we can find some seafood.”

Ghira laughed and took of with Kali, effectively leaving Sun and Blake to their own devices.   
Zwei barked once more, running a circle around Blake. 

She sighed. Maybe biting the bullet was the best way to do it. Like ripping off a bandaid.

_Yeah right._ She thought to herself, following after Zwei and Sun as though she were walking on hot needles. 

\-----

“This place is so cool!” Yang looked into a beautiful pool of water, strange colorful fish swimming around underneath a collection of lily pads and moss. 

“I know!” Ruby leaned over the pool with her sister, the two making weird fish faces at the koi in the water. They giggled and smiled, happily taking in the moment to forget about their worries. Nothing made Yang happier than seeing her sister so carefree again, even for just a moment. Nora threw some pieces of food in the water despite Ren’s complaints, all of them laughing as the fish happily gobbled up the treats. 

All five of them seemed a bit more cheerful, walking around the colorful city together. Being reunited and having a brief moment of peace lifted a weight off their shoulders. Even Yang’s. She rubbed her left arm, feeling the spot where Raven’s sword had dugged into it not too long ago. It was mostly healed now, just a bruised mark in place of where the wound had once been. Her aura was finally starting to work like it used to.

Part of her was looking forward to fighting again. To being back on the front lines. It made her blood rush and the adrenaline made her feel alive. Fighting against Grimm and Raven had been disturbingly thrilling. She shook her head at herself. That part of her was bad. She had to make sure she stayed focused. For Ruby. 

The group approached Haven, a massive, 6 tiered building near the center of the city. It had gorgeous architecture; massive wooden gates and stone pillars held up the towering structure. The grounds were immaculately kept, with a seemingly impossibly large number of flora dotting the earth, complimented by stunning fountains and marble statues. 

Whoever was in charge of Haven sure liked to flaunt their money. 

A patch of blue, green, and red hair indicated team SSSN, though Yang noted that their eccentric leader was missing. She’d never been overly fond of Sun, but she still hoped he was ok. 

“Guys it's them!” Neptune shouted, pointing out RNJR (plus Yang) to his teammates. 

The two teams met and exchanged hugs and greetings, feeling an overwhelming sense of melancholy. Just a few months ago they were still kids, preparing themselves to live a life of adventure and fun. Adulthood had come too quickly. 

“Where's Sun?” Ruby asked, tilting her head slightly. 

Neptune took an awkward glance at Yang before responding.   
“He took a detour getting back.”

Scarlett rolled his eyes and sighed.  
“He's supposed to be back soon. He responded to our messages yesterday.”

The three looked a little sheepish for some reason, but Yang didn't pay it much mind.

“Probably stowed away again.” Ruby shrugged. 

Sun and Blake weren't too far away, still following after Zwei. 

“Hey, I think he's taking us to Haven!” Sun he said excitedly. “You’re gonna love it!”  
That fact just made Blake’s stomach turn. The closer they got to the school the faster her heart beat. It was so stupid. If she couldn't even meet with Ruby again how could she possibly hope to face Adam? 

They could see a group of people in the distance standing in the school’s courtyard. Zwei barked happily and scurried toward the figures, Sun broke into a ran as well, excited to finally be back home with his friends. Blake stopped, trying to find the resolve to run after them in tandem. She could see Neptune’s bright blue hair, and the gorgeous red of Ruby's cape. She saw gold too. Lavender eyes. 

She saw Yang and she ran, straight out of the courtyard and back into the crowded city streets. 

“Guuuys!”

“Sun!”

Sun tackled Neptune to the ground, Scarlet and Sage jumping into the dogpile as well. They looked about as carefree and happy as could be. It was hard not to smile at the sight. Sun leapt up from the pile and grabbed his hair in astonishment.

Zwei came running after, jumping into Ruby’s arms and licking her face like he’d never get the chance to do it again. Yang ran over and scratched the dog behind his ears. She felt terrible. She’d almost forgotten about the dog after she’d been abandoned by Raven. Somehow, someway, the indomitable dog had found his way back to his owners. 

“Zwei! No way!” Ruby giggled as he licked her. It warmed Yang’s heart. 

“Holy crap, you guys are all really here! This is great!” Sun yelled. It was a strange feeling having the ‘gang’ back together. Especially since Pyrrha and Blake weren't there. Yang put on a smile anyway. She had to after all. 

“Especially you Yang, Blake is gonna flip when she sees y-” He stopped himself short, covering his own mouth with his hands as he looked around for the other faunus. She was nowhere to be seen. Sun looked like he just stepped on a pile of nails. Everyone looked at Yang. Her face was blank of emotion. Zwei whimpered. 

“... Blake?”

\-----  
 _  
No no no no no no no -_

_She couldn’t stop thinking no. Anyone but her. Not Yang._

_Blake ran as fast as she could, a bright red trail of blood following after her. She couldn’t tell whose blood it was anymore. Her side screamed and told her to stop. But she couldn’t stop. She tightened her grip on Yang’s unconscious form and kept running. The heat from the flames around them made her partner’s body feel even colder._

_Yang wasn’t supposed to bleed. Yang was invincible. She was just trying to save her. Save her from Adam. He wanted to hurt the people she loved. Hurt Yang._

_This was Blake’s fault._

_She tripped as she ran, falling onto the hard ground as Yang’s body fell next to hers.  
“No,” She whispered. “Not this. Please.” _

_Blake willed herself back to her feet and grabbed her partner, trying not to look at the spot where her arm once was. Everything was ruined. Everything. Yang had ash in her golden locks and blood splattered all across her body. Her eyes were closed, like she was just sleeping._

_“I remember the first night in our dorm,” Blake began, tears streaming down her face as she spoke to her unconscious friend. She couldn’t stop. She had to get her to safety._

_“I couldn’t sleep because I was so nervous, I was so afraid everyone would find out who I was.”  
Her strength was fading quickly. Blake’s abdomen felt like it was on fire. She tried hard to smile through her tears. _

_“And you and Ruby fell asleep so quickly, and I could you hear you two snoring. You rolled over in the middle of the night and almost fell out of your bed.”  
Keep going. She had to keep going. She was almost there. _

_“Remember when I had that nightmare, and you slept in my bed with me? I felt so much better, so much safer.” She sobbed and choked, despair and exhaustion gripping her._

_“I remember when you told me you loved me. I shouldn’t have panicked, I shouldn’t have run from you. Please stay with me.”_

_Blake fell back down onto the ground again, looking at Yang’s face. She wanted to see her eyes. Her eyes were so beautiful._

_“Stay with me,” She mumbled, unable to keep her own eyes open._

_“I love you.”_

_When she woke up she was still lying next to Yang. Someone had bandaged her injury, the place where her arm used to be. Blake wanted to touch her. She was so beautiful._

_Reaching out, she grabbed her partner’s hand, grip weak and shaky. Her hand was so cold. It was supposed to be warm. Warm like the sun._

_“I’m sorry.” She cried, voice hoarse and raw. “I’m sorry.”_

_Her words were repeated over and over again._

_“I’m sorry.”_  
  
\-----

Blake crouched on top of a building, head buried in her arms and ears pinned to her skull in shame. How could Yang be here? How could she possibly be here? She needed to leave again. It didn’t matter what Sun or anyone else could say; she couldn’t involve Yang in her problems, not ever again. 

A part of her wanted to cry in joy. She was alive. She was ok. Blake wanted to hug her and run her fingers in her hair, kiss her, never let go. But she couldn’t. Panic had taken over. 

“Blake come on!” She could hear Sun shouting. 

“Where are you?” Ruby’s voice ran out this time. “Blake!”  
The faunus could never mistake that cheerful soprano. They were all trying to find her. Would she be able to stay hidden from them? She didn’t hear Yang’s voice amongst the others. With a swift movement, she jumped to another rooftop. Mistral was plenty congested enough for her to easily get around. 

Zwei followed closely behind Yang, ears turned down, lagging behind the rest of the group in their pursual of Blake. She didn’t feel anything. She didn’t want to talk about Blake. She hadn’t thought about Blake in so long. 

Certainly, she never wanted to see her again.

Ruby kept glancing back at her, shooting worried looks. None of them could have predicted this. Yang just smiled back in response every time, even though her metal fist was clenched so tightly it was beginning to make a horrid metal screeching sound. The noise echoed loudly in her mind, like a horde of insects.

She didn’t want this. Blake would just keep running anyways. Like she did before.

Her eyes struggled to stay purple. She hated Blake. 

\-----

“Alright, you’re on your own kid.” 

“I’m not a child.”

“Whatever, princess.”

Weiss didn’t even bother dignifying the man. He was simply the one who smuggled her to Mistral. She walked down the ramp of the airship, heels clacking in triumph and she took in her first breath of Mistralian air in over ten years. 

“I’m coming Winter.” Her voice was full of pride. She had escaped the tyranny of her father and brother, no longer allowing herself to be subjected to their misogyny and cruelty. This was a new beginning for her. 

It was a bittersweet however. Her mind drifted to her friends, her team; her partner. She wanted them to see her triumph. She wanted to smile with them again. She wished they were there with her.

“The look on Ruby’s face would be priceless.” Weiss chuckled to herself, tightening her grip on her suitcase. She snuck her way through the hangar, using the instructions the smuggler had given her. Getting caught by the police wasn’t the way she wanted her trip to end. 

Klein had given her a vague idea of where she might find her sister. There was a small base in Mistral where the government carried out military operations and such. Another possibility was that she had been assigned to patrol and guard at Haven, especially after what had happened to Beacon. To her home. 

There wasn’t as much time as she would have liked to take in the sights. Tourism would simply have to wait until after she found her sister. She hummed to herself a melancholic tune as she traversed the streets. Years ago she had been to Mistral while accompanying her family on a business trip. The city had seemed massive and overwhelming then. While it was still as grand as she remembered, she no longer felt small. It was time for her to become a giant, a true force of nature. How else would she help her sister?

“Blake! Come back!” 

The heiress stopped in her tracks. She recognized that voice. 

“Is that… Jaune?” She mumbled to herself, writing it off initially as a trick of the mind.   
Another voice called out and her head whipped to its source of origin. 

“Ruby?” She asked, watching as a flash of red rounded the corner and nearly clobbered into her. 

“Aaaah, I’m sorry!” Ruby shouted, not having registered who it was yet. She brushed a spot of dust off her cape before looking at the person she’d nearly taken out. Tears rushed to her eyes.

“W-Weiss?”

“Ruby Rose… you dolt!” Weiss dropped her suitcase and brought Ruby into a bear hug, the younger huntress gladly reciprocating. 

“What are you doing here stupid?” Weiss asked through her tears. This couldn’t possibly be happening. There was no way. 

“I-I’d ask you the same Ice Queen!” Ruby sniffled, balling up Weiss’s shirt in her hands.   
How embarrassing. Weiss thought to herself, salty tears falling onto her face.   
The others came up around the corner, only just now able to keep up with Ruby’s impressive speed. 

“It’s Weiss!”

“No way!” 

“Hey Princess!” 

They all piled in around Weiss, making her feel incredibly happy and incredibly embarrassed at the same time. 

“How can all of you be here?” Weiss brushed tears out of her face, catching a glimpse of gold in the corner. 

“Yang!” She cried, hugging her other teammate. It didn’t register to her right away that her friend was hugging her back with a fake arm. 

“Weiss, I can’t believe it...” Yang managed to hold back her own tears. 

“Y-your arm, that’s Atlas tech…” Weiss gently touched the metal with her hand, causing Yang to flinch. 

“Oh, I’m sorry I-”

“It’s fine.” Yang waved it off. “It’s a uh, gift from Ironwood.”

“Weiss it’s so cool!” Ruby interjected. “Atlas tech is amazing!” 

“Well of course.” Weiss huffed before breaking out into laughter. The three embraced, holding each other tightly. Yang wish she felt more. She laughed with her team, but her heart felt hollow and empty. As happy as she was to see Weiss, to see her sister so happy, it felt wrong. Their team would never go back to the way it was.

Blake watched them from afar, in the shadows of an alleyway. Some god or demon was punishing her. It was the only explanation. They were all here. All of them. Her old schoolmates, her friends, her family. 

Her love.

Her former team, Weiss, Ruby, and Yang were before her, laughing happily and reuniting. She wished more than anything to join them. Her hand balled into a fist over her chest and she grit her teeth. She would need to find her parents and tell them she was leaving again. 

Tell them that she was ultimately a coward. That when finally faced with her past she would run once again. She turned her back to the wall of the alley, sliding down to the ground and covering her eyes and ears. 

Yang looked down at Zwei, who was biting at the tassels on her outfit, trying to drag her somewhere else. Wordlessly, she followed the dog, leaving the others behind as they continued to celebrate. Ruby and Weiss noticed a few moments later, giving each other and their other friends a look before following a distance behind Yang. 

Zwei lead her into an alley, where she could hear quiet sobbing bouncing off the stone walls. It overpowered the swarm of locusts in her head. She walked down and came to stand before a faunus sobbing into her arms. Blake looked up at Yang. 

“Yang.”


	18. Chapter 18

_“You understand why I called you here, yes?”_

_Raven sat like a statue in Ozpin’s office, the distant sound of clockwork gears and mechanisms clinking in the background._

_“Yeah.” She responded. Ozpin’s gaze was firmly focused on her. It was always easy to tell when the headmaster had his eye on you._

_“You killed someone. Even as a huntress, and even if it was in self defense, it’s quite a serious matter Raven.”_

_She grit her teeth. She hated it when he called her by name. It had been a few days since the incident in the woods, where she had beheaded d White Fang terrorist out of instinct and anger. Her team had barely talked about it. In fact, she’d barely spoken with any of them. Tai was avoiding her, and Qrow was furious. Summer would sit with her in silence, neither of them sure what to say._

_Qrow called her a monster. He said she wasn’t any better than the people who raised them. She knew he was probably right. She’d always been more numb to such acts of cruelty than him, even though, she had convinced herself, she’d done it for her brother. To protect him while they were amongst the tribe._

_She was probably a monster. She didn’t feel anything. No remorse. He had deserved to die. Hadn’t he?_

_“Am I going to be punished?” Raven asked. Ozpin sighed._

_“No. You’re not in any trouble.” He responded after a brief pause. “Raven, there are only certain types of people who are capable of killing a person.”_

_She remained silent. What was he going on about now?_

_“Sometimes, killing someone is the only way to keep others safe.” He took a sip out of his ever present coffee mug, swirling the dark liquid around in the cup._

_“What do you want Ozpin?” She had little patience for Ozpin’s ways of avoiding direct topics of conversation. He unsettled her._

_“To put it bluntly,” He huffed. “I would like you to kill someone.”_

_Her response didn’t come right away. She looked out the window at a flock of birds passing by.  
“Can’t you do it yourself?”_

_“Your position allows you a greater degree of freedom than I have. There are places I simply cannot go, things I cannot accomplish. We need your help.”_

_He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, looking distant, lost in thought. “Surely you of all people have noticed the change in the air. Grimm attacks are on the rise, as well as the emergence of a violent White Fang. Dust shipments are attacked and people disappear.”_

_“I’m aware.” Raven crossed her arms. Things had been strange in the world recently. Her nightmares were more dire than before. Twisted things look in the shadows._

_“It’s our duty to protect the people of this world.” Ozpin folded his hands together. “I’d like you to help us.”_

_“Who’s us? What about my team? Why just me?” She asked back, eyes narrowed and full of mistrust. The headmaster was very fond of his secrets._

_“There are those who want to harm Remnant and those who want to protect it. We are in the latter. You will meet them all in due time._

_“I don’t believe… the rest of your team would be suited for this particular mission.” He leaned back in his large chair._

_The rest of them aren’t killers. Raven thought to herself, anger rising. The rest of team STRQ would have trusted Ozpin with their lives. She was far from as trusting as them. It bothered her how he could get her brother to do anything he wanted._

_“Leave them out of this then. I’ll do it.” She smirked. If she could keep her team away from Ozpin’s machinations, it would be worth it. She could kill again._

\-----

“We missed you so much Blake.” Ruby hugged her friend tightly. “I was worried something terrible happened to you.” 

Blake hugged Ruby back, eyes shut tightly and making a poor dam for tears. 

“I missed you too. I can’t believe this is real.” It was true. The faunus thought at any moment she might wake up and all of this would disappear. 

“We always knew you could handle yourself.” Jaune said, patting her on the back. “But it’s good to see you safe and sound.”

Weiss smiled, nodding in agreement. “We can be back together as a proper team again.”   
She traded places with Ruby, giving Blake a big hug. 

“It’s not team RWBY without you after all.”

Blake sniffed and returned the hug. Could they really be a team again? The thought had to be too good to be true. After all, she ran from them. From Yang. She didn’t want to involve them in her struggle with the White Fang again. If Sun was any indication though, it was possible she didn’t have much of a choice. 

“I know. I’m sorry.” The three friends hugged each other in a group, fresh new tears racing out to replace the old. Blake smiled. She had missed her friends so much. If she could change anything, she never would have left. She missed Ruby’s bright smile and optimism and willingness to forgive. Her courageous spirit. She missed Weiss’s determination and intelligence. Her ability to understand.

It felt good to be close to them again. It made her heart swell. She shouldn’t have been afraid to see them again. 

Looking at Yang made her sink back into fear however. 

Yang leaned against a nearby building, watching the others reunite with Blake. She hadn’t said anything to her former partner yet. Everyone had deemed it wise to give her some space. Her face didn’t betray any emotion, but she watched the scene unfold carefully. She stared at her sister and Weiss and Blake, imagining herself over there with them. There was no way though.

Sun shuffled over to her awkwardly, hands stuffed inside his pockets.   
“So uh…” 

“I don’t want to talk to you Sun.” She cut him off, eyes still trained on her team. 

“But you want to talk to her. Right?” He asked, glancing over at Blake. “I mean, you have to.”

Yang felt like punching him but restrained herself. Her fingers tapped rhythmically against her arm. She could hear that screeching noise again. 

“I want to be alone.” She finally responded. 

“I don’t think that’s true.” The faunus responded, looking afraid and despondent all at the same time. He started to walk away back to the group again before saying one more thing. 

“She loves you, y’know.” He turned and headed back to the others. 

“Whatever.” Yang mumbled to herself, following after the faunus. It was time to head back to the hotel it seemed. Ruby walked up next to her, squeezing her sister’s hand. 

“Are you ok Yang?” Her voice was quiet. 

Yang smiled. “I’m fine.”

Blake trailed behind as they headed back. Sun parted ways with the rest of his team, telling them that he wanted to see the others back first. He came up next to her, giving her shoulder a light squeeze. 

“Hey, it’ll be ok.” 

Jaune turned to face them and offered a smile. “He’s right. It will be.”

“I hope so.” Blake pulled her jacket closer. She felt frigid as the sun began to set. 

\-----

“It’s so weird.” Oscar said, watching with Qrow as the former students of Beacon filed back into the building. They’d been gone longer than he’d been told, but it didn’t bother him too much. Being around the students felt weird to him. 

“It’s like I know them.” He mumbled, fidgeting with his fingers. 

_They’re heroes. They will be the key to saving our world._

Oscar scratched his ears. He didn’t really like it when Ozpin talked to him. It felt like there was another person inside of him trying to burst out, like his head was a balloon ready to pop. Qrow looked at the boy and sighed. He was happy to have ‘Oz’ back, but he felt sympathetic to the kid. Living with two people in your head sounded rough. He could hardly stand living with himself. 

“I’ll be right back.” Qrow told Oscar, the boy nodding in affirmation before whispering something to himself again. Ruby and her friends looked.... uncomfortable. The group had also clearly grown larger. Winter’s little sister was there, walking next to Ruby. Yang walked in front of the whole group, Tai’s dog Zwei trailing close behind her. 

He didn’t even want to know how the dog had gotten to Mistral. 

Qrow walked up to them, grabbing Ruby’s attention first as Yang continued up to their rooms without even saying hello. 

“What’s up kiddo? You guys look like shit.” He grumbled. “Oh, and hey Ice Queen.”  
The younger Schnee huffed and turned to Ruby, mumbling something like ‘you didn’t tell me he’d be here.’ It was one of the first sentences any of them had spoken since they’d found Blake. They parted ways with the rest of team SSSN and walked back to their lodgings almost entirely in silence. 

Team JNR followed in after them, accompanied by a shirtless monkey faunus and a cat faunus he recognized to be a member of Ruby’s team. Blake. Yang’s partner. She looked especially skittish, as though she might bolt for the door at any moment. The monkey boy tried to calm her down.

He let out a sigh and smiled slightly. Destiny had a funny way of bringing people together. He’d had a feeling that Ruby and her friends wouldn’t be separated forever. 

“Hey Uncle Qrow.” Ruby gave a small wave. “I guess I don’t need to introduce you guys again.”   
Weiss rolled her eyes and pouted, angry that she had to waste time speaking with Qrow, Winter’s apparent nemesis. 

He wanted to take a swig out of his flask, but it could wait a little while, after he knew his nieces were ok. Yang looked about ready to explode. 

“That’s uh, Sun and Blake. I don’t think you met them back at Beacon.” Ruby brought out her best smile. Sun waved at him cheerfully. Blake gave him a nearly inaudible hello. 

Qrow’s expression softened. “Shouldn’t you guys be partying? You’re all back together again. It’s a pretty crazy amount of luck you little runts have…”

“I wouldn’t call it luck.” Ren sighed, Nora placing a hand on his shoulder in solidarity. 

Jaune laughed weakly. He gently touched the red sash around his waist. “Destiny, I suppose.”

He looked at Blake. Something serious had happened between her and Yang. Something that involved his niece losing her arm. He remembered the kids struggle to explain to him what had happened on their end at Beacon. Yang practically refused to speak with him. 

“Hey Blake.” He began, scratching the back of his head. “Why don’t you go talk with my niece so you guys can have a proper reunion? You all look fucking miserable.”

The group seemed startled by his sudden comment. He knew from years of experience that putting it off would do no good. Team RWBY was better than team STRQ though. They had a chance to stay together. 

“Uncle Qrow’s right.” Ruby finally added after a moment of silence. Blake’s eyes drifted from the floor to her team’s old leader. 

“I-” Her voice was weak. 

“Blake please.” Ruby cut her off. “W-we missed you so much. I can’t believe you’re here again.”

Weiss put a hand on Ruby’s shoulder, eliciting a small smile from the younger girl.   
“I want us to be a team again. I don’t want anything more than that. B-but you have to talk to her. I… something’s wrong with her.”

Ruby whimpered. “I know she always tries to act tough for me. Even now, after what happened. But something’s wrong. I’m scared. Please Blake.”

Sun shuffled awkwardly near Blake not sure of what to say.  
“I’ll go find your parents and let them know you’ll be uh, late I guess. They’ll understand.” 

The group all nodded in agreement. Blake felt like she was on trial. A trial held by her old friends who still somehow cared about her. Who still somehow wanted to be friends. To be a team again. 

She shuffled up the stairs like a rail car on a set of tracks, unable to change direction. They were right. 

Every day in the past months she couldn’t help but think about them. About Yang and what happened. It plagued her thoughts and her dreams. When she heard that Ruby was in Mistral, she wanted to run again. When she saw Yang, she did run again. It hurt her chest. She was so afraid. What would the have done before Beacon fell? All four of them would have stood up to anything. Her friends were so courageous it made her feel like she could do anything. 

“I don’t want to run anymore.” She mumbled to herself, standing in front of the door Yang had entered. As she turned the knob, she felt the wind blow through the room. The window was open and she could see Yang sitting out on the rooftop. Carefully she made her way outside, bringing herself to sit a few feet away from her partner. 

Yang didn’t look at her, eyes focused on the shattered moon that was starting to rise in the sky.   
It was quiet. The numerous people of the city were starting to return home for the night. The world was changing into a beautiful, deep indigo. 

“How’d you get here?” Yang finally spoke, eyes still trained on the horizon. 

Blake looked over at her, mouth dry and thoughts racing. 

“By boat. From Menagerie.” She responded, training her gaze on the city. “With my family.”

“I didn’t know you had family there. Does Sun count too?” Yang’s voice was monotone. Hard and trained. Her emotions were a mess. She didn’t want to talk to Blake. She didn’t want to be here. She hated Blake. 

It seemed so stupid. Of course Blake had been at home with her family and Sun. Of course she’d been happy and safe while Yang suffered and cried and went without sleep for months, while she cried out her name in fits of rage. Of course she didn’t once try to find Yang while she went with her mother and nearly died. Of course she’d been with Sun. Yang would have been jealous if she felt an emotion other than anger. 

“... I guess I never told you about them.” The comment made her wince. She glanced down at Yang’s arm, the arm she’d been trying so hard not to look at. The firecracker had an amazing prosthetic on, a fine piece of Atlesian military equipment. Looking at it made her want to scream. 

It made Adam’s face flash in her mind. 

_“I’m going to destroy everything you love.”_

She whimpered, cat ears pressed down hard against her head. 

“No, I’m glad you had a good time” Yang laughed. It was bitter and spiteful. “How was the beach? I’m sure you and Sun got along great.”

“That’s not-” Blake tried to speak, tried to tell Yang that that wasn’t true at all. That not a day passed by that she didn’t think about her partner. 

“Not what?” Yang growled. Even though she still refused to look at her, Blake could feel it grow hotter; she could see Yang’s eyes starting to shift colors. 

“That’s not what happened.” Blake cried, rising to her feet. She clenched her fists, tears of anger and sorrow rolling down her face. “I-”

“Shut up!” Yang screamed, leaping to her feet in a blaze of fire. The roof shingles cracked under the weight of her feet. “Shut up!” 

Blake backed away from her, staring into a pair of blood red eyes. 

_“Starting with her.”_

“You left me!” Yang stepped towards her, fists held so tightly the skin on her still human hand was beginning to break. Blake had hurt her. She abandoned her. Just like Raven had. Just like Summer had. 

“You abandoned me so you could go run home!? So you could be with Sun?! I needed you and you. Weren’t. There!” Every word cut through Blake like a knife. If hell existed it couldn’t possibly be worse than the pain and fear she felt as she faced Yang. 

“That’s not what happened!” Blake repeated, the volume of her voice raising. “I left because- I left to protect you!” 

Yang laughed. It was demented. “You didn’t protect anything. You didn’t protect Ruby or Weiss, and you sure as fuck didn’t protect me!” She raised her metal fist up, flexing the fake fingers. 

“I know.” Blake closed her eyes tightly as Yang marched closer to her. She could feel the heat singing her skin. It was like staring down the reaper. 

“I know. I was a coward.” She opened her eyes again, tears stinging like acid. 

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” She repeated the phrase over and over again, clutching her head as she remembered Yang lying on the ground, unconscious, so cold and distant. She tried to back away from the heat, heel catching one of the shingles on the roof and causing her to fall down. 

“I hate you.” Yang crouched down and reached out with her left hand, grabbing the collar of Blake’s jacket and pushing her down into the roof. Blake whimpered.

“I hate you so much.”  
She wanted to hurt her. She wanted to make her suffer the same way she had. It would be justice. Revenge. Her heart was so full of pain she couldn’t think clearly. Her arms moved on their own. 

Yang raised up her metal fist, red eyes reflecting off of the polished metal. Blake shut her eyes and cried. There wasn’t anything she could do. She deserved this. She’d die here. 

“I’m sorry.” Blake waited for the strike. She waited and waited. But it never came. With her eyes still shut she felt metal stroking her face, a hand cupping her cheek. It felt cold. Something wet fell against her face. 

“I can’t feel it.”

Tentatively she opened her eyes. Yang was crying. 

“I can’t feel it.” She sobbed, bringing her forehead to rest in the crook of Blake’s neck. The burning heat from before was gone. She couldn’t Blake’s skin or her warmth with her prosthetic. She let the arm fall limp to the ground and cried. How could she have tried to strike her?

Slowly, Blake sat up and wrapped her arms around Yang’s back, pulling the blond in close to her. 

“How could you leave me?” Yang’s voice was muffled against Blake’s shoulder. Her tears made her clothes damp. She wanted to stay there forever in the faunus’s arms. She didn’t want to lose her again. 

“Don’t leave me. Please don’t leave me.”

Blake wept, squeezing Yang tightly. She was warm like a fire, pushing out the cold. “I won’t.” 

They cried together, arms tightly wound around each other. It felt right. Broken, but coming back together again. Yang kept holding onto Blake even as the girl’s breathing slowed and her sobs ceased, sleep overtaking her. She carried her back inside and gently laid her down onto the bed in the room. 

She crouched down by the bed, watching the faunus rest peacefully. Sitting down in a nearby chair in the room, Yang finally let herself close her eyes and drifted off to sleep.


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Hello! Thanks for reading so far! To everyone who commented or left kudos or just enjoyed the story, thank you so much! There's still a ways to go before we're finished up here so I hope you continue to enjoy :)

Raven withdrew her blade from the man’s chest, ignoring the spray of blood. The room was a war zone. Viscera and gore covered the walls and the corpses of researchers were scattered across the floor. A scientist in a once white coat whimpered in the corner, backing further and further into the wall as Raven approached him. 

“Where is he?” Raven asked, flicking the blood from her sword in a swift motion. 

“I don’t know!” The man screamed, shivering from fear. “I already told you!” 

Raven kicked a nearby corpse. She was growing impatient with their lying.  
“Tell me now or I’ll kill you.” Raven hissed, crouching down to look the man in the eyes. 

“I don’t know!” He yelled back, sweat dripping down his brow. She grabbed his hand and twisted, hard, snapping the man’s wrist with a disgusting pop. He screamed in agony, clutching his wrist. 

“Where. Is. Watts?” She asked again, hand wresting on the hilt of her blade.

“H-Haven!” The man finally answered, biting his lip as he tried not to scream again. “He’s staying somewhere at Haven! W-with the headmaster! Please let me go!” 

Raven stood up and glanced around the room. Scientific equipment littered the room. Test tubes and flasks lay broken in piles on the ground, research papers still fluttering down to the ground from the chaos. It had looked like a normal lab, constructed in the abandoned outskirts of Mistral, but they weren’t researching anything altruistic here. Far from it. 

“Thanks.” Raven drew her blade and slit the man’s throat. Someone participating in such disgusting research had no place in Remnant. She broke down a door leading further into the lab, eyes narrowing as she looked at the rows and rows of tanks filling the halls. Disfigured humans and gross mutations floated in sterile solutions, vacant eyes tracing her movements. 

She knew Watts, the owner of the facility was likely working in tandem with Salem. Several members of her tribe had been spirited away to the lab, to be tested on like rats. To be turned into half human half grimm abominations. The man was an incredibly wealthy individual who had a history of investing in military research and cruel science, even back when Raven was still a huntress. 

She paused in front of several tanks, recognizing the twisted remains of her tribe members floating, half alive and half dead. The pure black of the Grimm and the white skulls poked out through their flesh, corneas full of bursted blood vessels that nearly gave them the same yellow-red eyes as the monsters. With a click, Raven drew her axe and shattered all three of the tanks in tandem, the bodies slipping out onto the floor. She ended their suffering. 

Plans needed to be made. The tribe’s survival had to be ensured. It was all she had left. She’d kill Salem herself if necessary. 

\-----

Blake woke up, after what felt like the longest day ever. She opened her eyes, rolling over onto her side, not quite wanting to leave the comfort of the bed yet. Her gaze fell onto Yang, who was sleeping in the corner of the room, head bobbing up and down gently as she snoozed. 

She remembered the night before. Her head and chest ached from the storm of emotions that had ensued. It was embarrassing to think that Yang had to carry her back to her room. Getting up off the bed, she drew closer to Yang, taking a closer look at her arm. The blond had taken her gauntlets off and jacket off, allowing Blake a better view of the prosthetic. It connected right at the base of her forearm, right where…

She swallowed. Thinking about that night hurt so much, but it was hard not to address it with Yang right in front of her. Her hair was still that beautiful golden color, cascading down her shoulders and chest. Her abdomen was still just as toned as it always had been, muscles showing with every breath she took. 

Even after everything, Yang was really beautiful. 

Yang’s eyes fluttered open slowly, the blurred world slowly coming into focus. She felt like she was hungover. Blake was nearby, looking at her. 

Right. Blake. Blake was back. 

And she’d almost splattered her face across the roof. 

“Hey.” Blake said quietly, taking a step back from Yang. She looked down at the ground, bringing her arms around her chest. 

“... hey.” Yang responded, grabbing her jacket off the ground and standing up. She flexed her fingers on both hand and replaced her gauntlets in silence, Blake simply standing in the middle of the room. The blond headed to the door and turned the handle, finally looking back at her partner. 

Blake looked tired. She had bags under her eyes and red in the whites. Her cat ears were pointed down towards the ground. The big black bow she’d worn during their year at beacon was gone, revealing her faunus heritage to all. Most noticeably, she had a scar on her abdomen, shaped like a crooked crescent moon. Yang winced, blinking away the flames that appeared in her vision. 

Even after everything, Blake was still really beautiful. 

“We should go down. The others are probably waiting.” Yang said, turning the handle. 

Blake paused behind her, watching as Yang opened the door.  
“... Can’t we stay?” Blake asked, eyes boring holes into the carpet. “Just… just a bit longer.”

Yang closed her eyes. Part of her did want to stay. But she was afraid. She didn’t want to talk about what had happened the night before. 

“I have to be there for Ruby.” 

Blake lunged forward and grabbed Yang’s human hand tightly, looking desperate. The other girl flinched.

“Yang, please.”

Yang bit her lip. Blake was so close to her. 

“I… can’t.” Yang pulled her hand away and left the room. The faunus closed her eyes for a moment before following after her. She didn’t know what she expected. It was too much to hope for everything to be fixed in a single fitful night. Blake didn’t want to give up though, not with her partner so close. Keeping her emotions in check was a struggle. 

They moved outside in silence, running into Weiss and Ruby just outside the building. 

“There you are! See, I told you they’d show up Weiss.” Ruby chirped, swinging her legs back and forth as she sat on a railing. 

Weiss huffed. “It’s about time. We were about to leave without you. Jaune, Ren, Nora, and Qrow and his friend have already left.”

Yang scratched the back of her head bashfully. “Heh, sorry. Heavy sleeper don’tcha know?”

Weiss rolled her eyes as Ruby giggled, their cheerfully dispositions mellowing as they saw how despondent Blake still looked. They’d both heard shouting last night after Blake went up after Yang, though no one knew how it turned out. 

“So uh…” Ruby began, breaking an awkward silence. “JNR… RNJ? NRJ? Um, well they’re around town trying to find anything suspicious. Uncle Qrow and Oscar went back to Haven again. He’s gonna try to meet with the headmaster.”

She fidgeted with her fingers. “I thought we could go to Haven, y’know, the four of us and look for clues?” 

Weiss gave a small smile. “I’d like to see if my sister is there as well. It’s one of my leads.”

“Whatever you think Ruby.” Yang said, making a fist. “Let’s do it.” 

Blake looked off to the side. “I need to meet back up with my parents. They… probably want to know what happened.”

“Oh.” Ruby sounded a bit disappointed. She hopped of the railing and pushed Yang towards Blake. “Well then, you two can go together! Keep your eyes peeled!” 

“Eh? Ruby no.” Yang protested, “I should go with you.”  
Blake seemed conflicted. 

“Nah.” Ruby blew a raspberry. She grabbed Weiss’s hand and quickly marched off, her partner protesting.

“H-hey, Ruby hold on a second! Let go of me!” The heiress screeched, getting dragged along by Ruby’s immense speed. 

“There’s no time to waste Weiss! Let’s go!”  
Before Yang and Blake even had a chance to protest, they were left alone again.  
Calling the air between the two awkward was an understatement. Yang rubbed her fingers together as Blake avoided eye contact. 

The faunus grabbed her scroll and sent a quick message to her parents, berating herself for not doing so earlier. Short range transmissions seemed to work well enough in the city. 

“Um… I guess we should go.” Blake finally said, taking a few pensive steps forward.

“Yeah.” Yang responded somewhat curtly. She followed after the faunus, the two walking in silence through the city. Blake tried to remember the directions their father had given them in case anyone got lost. It had been mostly for Sun’s sake. 

“Does it hurt?” Blake asked, slowing her pace a bit to walk in tandem with Yang. 

“Huh?” Yang responded, snapping out of the reverie she'd found herself in. 

“... y-your arm.” Blake stammered, suddenly feeling very vulnerable and ashamed again. She'd been glancing periodically at Yang’s prosthetic the whole morning. It hurt. 

“Yeah. Sometimes.” Yang responded, shrugging slightly. Blake winced. Of course it still hurt her. It had been a stupid question. They passed by a myriad of people through the city, a great number of people staring at the odd couple. It wasn’t very often you saw a faunus and a human amputee together, Blake supposed. 

“What are your parents like?” Yang asked. Blake was surprised at the question. She hadn’t thought Yang would speak to her at all during their walk. 

“Uh… My dad is a lion faunus. My mom is a cat faunus like me.”

“Oh.” Yang said quietly, not probing further. 

“He’s the chieftain of Menagerie.” Blake added, not quite wanting the conversation to end yet, despite how awkward it was. Just having Yang talking to her again seemed amazing.

“So are you like a princess or something?” Yang chuckled. She was smiling, but Blake could tell it was far from genuine. She missed the blond’s bright, confident smile. It was a smile that could move mountains. This was so weak. So forced. 

“Um… not really.” The faunus shrugged. A princess? She’d never thought of herself that way, even though she did have a certain amount of status in Menagerie. Her parents never tried to flaunt it, even when Ghira was leader of the White Fang itself. 

“This is awkward huh?” Yang chuckled, scratching the back of her head. Blake found herself chuckling a bit as well, more out of instinct than actual mirth. 

“Y-Yang I…” Blake began. She was desperate to reconcile things. “I wanted to see you again.”

“I did too.” Yang added, eyes focused on the cobblestone path they were on. “If you wanted to see me you would have.”

Blake clenched her fists. She regretted not finding Yang, not having stayed.  
“You have to believe me. I know what I did was wrong but,” 

She choked a bit on her words, confidence fading. “I thought about you every day. All of you.”

Blake stopped walking, Yang pausing as well. She could see the anger in the Blond’s eyes, though she was containing it far better than the night before. 

“Especially you.” 

Yang bit her lower lip, walking closer to Blake. She could hear her partner breathing, heavy, uneasy breaths. It was both too close and not close enough for Blake. 

“I’m messed up.” Yang spoke quietly. “I tried to hurt you. I should be better. I should forgive you.”

She placed a trembling arm on Blake’s shoulder. Her grip twitched. “But I can’t.”  
Blake wanted to hug her so badly, as though the simple gesture would make everything bad go away. Undo all the pain and hurt that had befallen them. 

“... it hurts so much.” Yang rested her head in the crook of Blake’s neck, much like the night before. Blake knew that she hadn’t talked to Ruby about this. Her partner always wanted to seem so strong. Invincible. She’d only ever exposed that part of her to Blake. To help Blake. 

She’d told her about her mother.

Before Blake could do anything Yang pulled back, composing herself once again. She went through the motions like an expert. 

“Let’s keep going. Can’t make your folks wait right?” 

It hurt to watch her like this. Watch her self destructing. Blake winced, thinking about how Yang had saved her from herself all those months ago. Now, when she needed to, Blake was far from being able to return the favor. 

They continued onward, Blake finally stopping them in front of a modest sized abode near the outskirts of the city. The home had two stories, several fruit vendors staking place in front of it. She knocked on the door, hoping her parents would answer quickly. 

She wished Yang wasn’t there. 

“Blake?” Her mother’s soft voice came from the door. “Dear it’s Blake!” 

“Hey mom.” Blake felt incredibly awkward. Yang remained silent.

Ghira and Kali opened the door, welcoming Blake and Yang into the building. The inside was cozy and bright. Colorful pillows and lanterns adorned the interior. It felt safe and well lived in. 

“My old friend is out right now. He has a job here as a palanquin driver now.” Ghira said, offering the two girls something to drink. Blake and Yang were seated on a comfy couch, centered around a small coffee table. Ghira sat down across from them, looking massive and oversized as always.

“Sun stopped by last night to let us know where you were but…”

“We’re glad you’re alright. We were about to go look for you.” Kali sat down on the couch opposite the two. Ghira and Kali looked at Yang, both of them noticing the girl’s missing arm. Blake’s father smiled slightly.

“You must be Yang.” 

“Y-You know me?” Yang stuttered, choking on her glass of water. Kali elbowed Ghira, as Blake nearly buried her head in her hands. She distinctly remembered telling her father about Yang. Specifically about how important her partner was to her. She hasn’t ever intended on them meeting. 

“I heard about you from Blake.” Ghira crossed his arms, nodding to his daughter. “You’ve been watching after my daughter for a long time.”

Yang looked at Blake for a moment, matching eyes with the faunus. As much as she wanted to keep staring at her purple eyes, Yang turned away, sheepishly looking at the floor. 

“Not really, I mean…” 

“You don’t need to say anything.” Kali chimed in, expression soft. The two parents shared a knowing look, watching as their daughter kept her gaze trained on her partner. The blond smiled, just slightly. 

“So Blake, what’s the plan?” Ghira crossed his arms. “Your mother and I were going to start looking through some of our old contacts. Try to meet with Kahn.”

Blake sighed. With all the reunions, there hadn’t really been time to make a strategy. 

“What are you guys doing?” Yang asked. 

“We’re taking back the White Fang.” Blake clenched her fists, determination slowly replacing her anxiety. She looked over at Yang, hope reflecting in her eyes. 

“Yang. Please, I want you to fight with me. All of you.” She took a deep breath. “Cinder was working with the Fang. If we find them… we might find her.”

Blake knew how much Yang wanted to help Ruby, and how much Ruby wanted to find Cinder. Find the one who ruined their lives and made Beacon fall. Thinking about that night made her feel fire on her skin and the scar on her abdomen ache. 

Yang closed her eyes, feeling the gaze of the other three as they waited for her decision. She wanted to help. She wanted to fight. Blake was likely correct; the White Fang and Cinder were definitely in bed with each other. 

Yet part of her screamed no. Blake didn’t deserve her help. Right? Her chest ached, and her right arm burned. Her eyes opened to meet Blake’s, determined yellow eyes glistening in the light. They were beautiful. Her partner had always been so driven, determined to fight for justice. As much as she’d hurt her she still wanted Blake to stay with her. 

It drove her nuts.

“I’ll help.” She finally responded. A tension was lifted off of the group, Blake’s parents smiling broadly as the faunus gingerly took Yang’s left hand in hers. The blond winced, but didn’t pull back, squeezing Blake’s hand in return. 

“Thank you.” Blake whispered. Yang simply shrugged asKali chuckled quietly. Ghira brought himself to his feet, stretching his massive arms. 

“Well, no time to waste. Your mother and I will head out. Let’s regroup later this evening.” 

With a few parting goodbyes Blake’s parents left the building, leaving Blake and Yang standing out front, wondering what to do next. 

“Let’s head back to Haven.” Yang said, putting on the same fake smile from before. “We can figure out what to with the others. Maybe they’ve even found something.” 

“Yang.” Blake’s brow was furrowed, fists clenched tightly. “Please. You don’t have to pretend around me. I know you’re angry.”

Yang laughed, pushing her hair out of her face. “What do you want from me? Do you want me to forgive you?”

“I-” Blake began, cutting herself off. Of course she wanted Yang to forgive her. She knew that would probably be impossible though. 

“You abandoned me.” Yang choked. “And you know what the worst part is?”

Blake winced, preparing for a blow, verbal or physical. 

“I still want you.” 

Yang started walking away back to Haven, Blake following after her, brushing away the tears that had formed in her eyes.

\-----

“Blake that’s amazing! Of course we’ll help you!” 

The group had reunited at haven, team RWBY, SSSN, and JNR sitting around a table at a noodle restaurant. Ruby was thrilled to hear that Blake still wanted to fight. She’d stood up and placed a foot on the table, pointing dramatically into the distance before being yanked back down into her chair by Weiss. 

“Thanks guys.” Blake laughed at the sight. It felt amazing to be back with everyone again, even though she knew everyone was sharing awkward glances at her and Yang, who’d opted to sit away from the faunus and next to her sister. 

“There’s a lot of people grumbling about the Fang.” Ren said, sitting next to a very hungry Nora who was slurping her noodles at mach speed. “We tried to ask some shady folk about it. There’s a lot of movement in the underground circles apparently.”

Jaune nodded in agreement. “There’s an underground fight club that’s supposedly run by a pretty important White Fang member. We could maybe get an in through there.”

The blond boy sighed. “Y’know. Sounds totally safe.”

Ruby played with her food absent mindedly, betraying her anxiety to the rest of the group. “We didn’t find too much at Haven. All the students and teachers we asked didn’t know who we were talking about. Looks like they never actually went to school there…” 

“My sister wasn’t there either. She’s likely at the military base here.” Weiss slurped her noodles politely, with all the grace of a real princess. “I’ll be heading there later to meet with her. Ruby has already told me she’d like to accompany me.” 

Yang nodded. “Sounds like a plan Ice Queen.”

Sun shook Blake’s shoulder. “We should check out that fight club huh?”

“Sounds like a job for team SSSN.” Neptune said, fist bumping his friend across the table. Sage and Scarlet seemed equally eager. 

“We should go with a small group.” Blake said, amused and annoyed by the boys’ enthusiasm. “If we all go in as armed as heavily as we are, we’ll just be painting a target on ourselves.”

“Well, why don’t we go then?” Sun smiled. “We’re both faunus.” 

“I’m worried they’ll recognize me.” Blake said, biting her lip. If Adam was around like Illia had said, she needed to wait to show her face openly to any White Fang members. Taking a stealthy approach at first would make more sense. 

“I’ll do it.” Yang interjected. 

Everyone at the table awkwardly stared at Yang as she took another bite out of her soup nonchalantly. 

“I’ve had plenty of people staring at me here. The last thing people saw was me breaking Mercury’s leg. They think I’m a bad guy anyways.”

Ruby frowned, resting her hand on Yang’s shoulder. The blond smiled in response. It meant a lot to her that her sister was worried. Yang wanted to help though in any way she could.  
“Why wouldn’t a bad guy be in the underground?” 

She laughed, pointing her utensils at Sun. “You can still come too of course! I can use a number two.” 

“Hey who says you’ll be doing all the heavy lifting?” Sun wiggled his eyebrows, getting a laugh from a few at the table despite the awkwardness. Yang appreciated his effort in trying to lighten the mood. 

“No!” Blake said suddenly, rising up from her chair and slamming her palms on the table. The awkwardness quickly returned. She felt her cheeks turn hot as everyone switched their attention to her. 

“Y-You can’t…” She stuttered, embarrassed by her outburst. The faunus slumped back down into her seat, feeling Yang’s gaze the most of anyone. 

“It’s not safe I can’t…” Blake continued, staring at the table for a moment before lifting her gaze to meet Yang’s. “I can’t ask you to do that.”

“I’m doing it.” Yang snapped back, eyes briefly flashing red. Ruby’s grip on her shoulder tightened. 

“A few of us should be in disguise and watch over the event.” Weiss chimed in, looking at Blake with a sad expression. “Blake, your stealth has always been impressive. If you feel confident, you can certainly still accompany them.” 

The heiress moved a lock of hair out her face. “Other than that, it’s a good place to start. There’s hardly anyone you can trust more than Yang.” 

She glanced over at Sun. “And uh, Sun too I guess.”

“Hey!” 

“If we go, I’d like to go with Blake too.” Ruby chirped. “We’ll watch somewhere in the audience. Just in case something goes wrong. Though I mean, it probably won’t right?”

“Tomorrow then.” Yang said definitively. “Though you might wanna leave your hood Ruby, you stick out like a sore thumb…”

\-----

Blake returned with the others to the hotel, RNJ heading to their rooms after a quick goodbye to everyone. Team RWBY stood in the lobby. They hadn’t all had a moment to just themselves since they’d all reunited. 

“I haven’t said it yet but…” Ruby began, rubbing her arm from nerves. “I can’t believe we’re all back together. I really can’t.”

The young huntress brushed tears from her eyes. “Team RWBY was always the best team huh?”

Yang smiled warmly. “Of course. Cinder’s got nothing on us. We’re coming for her.” 

Weiss and Blake nodded in agreement. Things may have been awkward between Yang and Blake still, but the team was finally starting to come together again. Starting to heal. 

“Once I find Winter, the scales will be weighed even more in our favor.” Weiss said proudly. “I also have a new skill under my belt that I’m eager to try out.” 

“We’ll win for sure.” Blake tried to feign confidence. “We have to.” 

The group headed up the stairs, Weiss joining Ruby in her room. 

“Are you going back to your parents?” Yang asked Blake, turning the handle to her modest hotel room. 

“It’s late.” Blake mumbled. “I was hoping… I could stay here again. With you.” 

“... sure.” The blond responded. Both of them entered the room, Yang walking over to the corner. With a grunt, she removed her metal prosthetic. Her arm ached. She hadn’t had a good chance to take the metal off. Blake watched the process awkwardly, face twisting into pain as she watched Yang remove her arm. 

“It’s fine. It doesn’t hurt. Wanna play with it?” Yang grinned, holding the arm up with her left. It was mostly true. Blake raised an eyebrow at the awkward attempt at humor, unable to keep a smile from forming as she saw Yang acting a bit more like herself. 

 

“Maybe if I need a back scratcher.”

Yang laughed, a good, real laugh. It warmed Blake's heart. She took her coat off, stripping down to her top and underwear. 

“You want the bed?” Yang asked, looking over at a suddenly very red Blake. There was enough space for both of them, but she wasn't quite sure she wanted that yet. 

“Um, n-no that's fine I'll take the chair.” She stuttered, averting her eyes. 

“I-I'm gonna get cleaned up.” The Faunus scurried into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. She pressed her back against door, taking a deep breath as she heard Yang climbing into bed through the portal. 

_Way to go Blake._ She thought to herself, waiting for her heart rate to slow down a bit. Her partner was every bit as attractive as ever, more than enough to make Blake feel like a love struck high schooler again. She couldn't afford to be so childish around her anymore. 

She undressed and hopped into the shower, welcoming the warm water and steam as it washed away dirt and tears. Things were finally happening. Tomorrow, her fight would resume, her quest for justice and revenge. Excitement and fear lived close together in her heart. She couldn't ask for better companions to charge back into battle with though. If anyone could stop the White Fang and Cinder, it would be team RWBY and their friends. 

Blake exited the bathroom, grabbing one of the stock bathrobes off the wall. It was a surprisingly soft fabric, making Blake slightly less upset that she didn't have her night clothes with her. Yang was sitting on the bed, having been too restless to fall asleep right away. The two met eyes for a moment before Blake turned away again, her familiar blush from before returning. 

Yang watched her partner, eyes trailing the drops of water that fell from her hair down her collarbone and further. Her skin was tanned from her time on Menagerie, black hair standing out starkly against the beautiful olive color. She remembered when she first started staring at Beacon; she'd tried to keep it subtle, but it was always a challenge. Surprisingly no one ever caught on except Weiss and Ren. 

Blake glanced at her, clearly embarrassed. “What?”

Yang rose from the bed and walked towards her, Blake taking a step back into the wall. 

“Nothing.” Yang muttered, the heat rising straight to Blake’s human and cat ears. She could feel the warmth radiating off of Yang’s body from her semblance. It was a feeling she had missed. She'd spent far too many cold nights alone since Beacon fell. 

“Can I touch you?” The blond lifted a hand.

Blake swallowed. “Please.”

She closed her eyes as she felt Yang’s hand brush against her cheek. 

“You got rid of your bow.” Yang said, twisting a lock of the Faunus’s hair in her hand. She liked the sensation. 

“I didn't want to hide anymore.” Blake responded. She leaned into the touch, Yang’s hand cupping around her cheek. 

“You’re beautiful.” Yang watched her ears twitch in embarrassment. Blake closed her eyes.

“Can I kiss you?” Blake whispered, resting her forehead against Yang’s. She didn’t have to wait for a response, as Yang leaned in and kissed her. The faunus felt lighter, like she’d been swept off her feet. She wrapped her arms around her partner’s shoulders and continued the kiss, not wanting to pull away. 

Yang grabbed her waist with her arm and pulled her close, kissing Blake once again. She gently pulled her back, the two tumbling onto the bed, still locked in each other's arms. They kissed more intensely, Yang breathing in deeply as Blake moaned. The firecracker flipped her over onto to her back, straddling her waist with her legs. 

She looked down at Blake, staring into a pair of desperate yellow eyes. Blake looked back at her, unsure of watch emotion was being shown in her partner’s lilac eyes. 

“Yang, please,” The raven haired girl begged. She didn’t want to stop. Her emotions and desires had had far too long to build up. “Please don’t stop.”

“Blake,” Yang began. Blake realized that had been the first time Yang had said her name since they reunited. She wanted her to say it again. 

“I don’t think we should.” Yang breathed, clenching the fabric of the bed with her hand. Blake bit her lip. 

“Yang?” 

“I’d just be using you.” Yang swallowed and Blake could see that she was forcing back tears. “I’m not the same person I was. I don’t know who I am anymore, I’m… I’m not right inside anymore.”

Blake leaned up and wrapped her arms back around Yang. Even when she was so scared, so afraid, she was still warm like a burning fire. She squeezed her tightly. 

“You’re the strongest person I’ve ever met.” Blake began, running her fingers through Yang’s hair. “I couldn’t wish to be even half as strong as you. Everything you’ve been through… that I put you through, after all of that you’re still here.” 

She looked her partner in the eyes. “I’m always in the shadows, but when I’m with you, I-I feel like I’m in the light.”

Yang smiled weakly. “I feel like I’m in the shadows now.” 

“Don’t say that.” 

Yang grabbed Blake’s hand and brought it up to her face, resting her cheek in her palm.  
“I wanted this so bad before. I wanted you to love me.”

“I do love you Yang.” Blake responded, tears of her own forming. “I should have been there for you. I should have told you I loved you.” 

The blond sobbed, letting her tears flow freely. She felt like all she did lately was cry.  
“Everyone always leaves. I’m afraid I’m going to lose everyone again.”

She grit her teeth and took a deep breath.  
“I met my mom. I met Raven.”

Blake looked at her in disbelief before pulling her into an even tighter hug.  
“And you know what? She’s just as horrible as I imagined. I didn’t learn anything.”

“You’re not her Yang.” Blake tried to soothe her partner, gently moving her hand back and forth across Yang’s back. 

“Then she left me. Again.” Yang laughed through her tears. 

She squeezed Blake’s arm tightly with her left. “You have to promise.” 

Blake leaned back, brushing the tears off her face. “Promise?”

“Promise that you won’t ever leave me again.”

She kissed the blond again, pressing her forehead against Yang’s in the aftermath. 

“I promise.”


	20. Chapter 20

“Alright, so we all know the plan right?” Blake asked everyone, tightening the black cloak and hood she was wearing against her head. She’d wrapped her ears so that they pressed down against her head; it was uncomfortable, but more than worth it in order to remain hidden. 

“You and me are gonna sneak in and hide in the crowd.” Ruby chirped, looking incredibly out of place without her red hood. She’d begrudgingly left it behind in the name of stealth. 

“Sun and I are gonna enter the fights. Cozy up with the owner and try to get some information.” Yang stretched out her arms, Blake’s gaze falling on the girl’s prosthetic. Their eyes met for a moment, the blond noting the sorrowful look on Blake’s face. 

“The rest of us will be close by in case something goes wrong.” Weiss finished, nodding with the rest of their friends. 

“Alright, I’m ready to kick some ass!” Sun said excitedly. He and Yang shared a fist bump before they headed into the club, saying some final good lucks to the rest of the team. Blake grabbed Yang’s shoulder before she could open the door. 

“Be careful Yang.” Blake was clearly worried. 

“I will. These chumps have nothing on us.” Yang responded with a smile, trying to ease her partner’s nerves. 

Sun and Yang finished their entrance, being greeted with an array of neon lights and loud dance music. A large arena was in the center of the club, a couple fighters already throwing some practice swings around. Many of them were very angry looking faunus. 

“You two here to fight or bet?” A burly tiger faunus sauntered up to them, catlike pupils boring into the two blonds. They were bright and yellow, full of malice. Nothing like Blake’s amber eyes. Scars covered her face and the sleeveless shirt she was wearing revealed a massive set of biceps. 

“Fight.” Yang smirked. It was time for bravado and posturing, something Yang knew she was plenty good at. 

“I recognize you.” The faunus smiled wickedly, sharp canines reflecting the colorful light of the club. “You’re that girl from the Vytal Tournament. Broke that kid’s leg.”

Yang could hear Sun swallow next to her. He was going to need to put on a better front.   
“Yeah. I’m here to break some more.” 

The club owner (Yang assumed) laughed. “Humans aren’t too popular around here, but I’d like to see what you can do.” 

She gestured to Sun, who was trying to hide his trepidation. He wasn’t much of a liar.   
“Your friend is looking a little sheepish. Sure you’re up for it monkey boy?”

“Hell yeah.” Sun responded, pumping his fist. 

The faunus laughed. “Alright tough guy. I’ll put you two in the bracket. Oh, you’ll need to take that arm off by the way.”

She gestured to Yang’s prosthetic. “No weapons. Fists only.” 

Yang shrugged and took it off on the spot, tossing the prosthetic into Sun’s arms. She could still fight. She’d been through far, far worse than anything these brawlers could throw at her.   
“I don’t need it anyways.”

Her hand curled into a fist, itching for a fight.

\-----

“Alright everyone shut up!” The club owner’s massive voice rang out in the club, all the attendees and fighters drawing their eyes to the faunus. 

“It’s time to fight!” A flurry of cheers flooded the club. 

“These guys sure are bloodthirsty huh?” Sun elbowed Yang. “Wouldn’t be surprised if they were our bad guys at all.” 

“Let’s hope so.” Yang responded. “I’d rather get things over with sooner rather than later.”

“First match!” The faunus looked wickedly at Yang. “Manus versus Yang! You know the rules. First one to get knocked out loses! If you die, too bad!”

The blond rolled her shoulders, glancing at her missing right arm. She hadn’t been expecting to go first. She’d have to put on a good show. Her thoughts drifted to Blake and Ruby, watching somewhere in the audience. Losing wasn’t an option. 

Sun gave her a thumbs up before she paced her way to the stage, taking her jacket off and setting it on the rim of the arena. 

_You can do this._ She cheered herself on in her mind. When she’d been with Raven, she’d been able to make short work of Grimm with just her one arm. She _could_ do this. Brushing away the thought of her mother from her mind, Yang dropped into a boxing stance, fist ready to take on her opponent. 

A tough looking bear faunus came into the arena, eyeing Yang like she was a piece of meat.   
“Hope you’re ready to die blondy.” He cackled, claws like knives stemming from his finger tips. 

No weapons huh? Yang thought angrily to herself, feeling like an idiot. Obviously she’d been had. The club owner wanted blood. 

_I’ll give you blood then._

“Ready?” The owner asked. “Fight!”

Her opponent dove at her, arm pulled back far as he tried to land a powerful right hook at Yang. His movements were massive and easily telegraphed. She easily dodged the first blow with a quick sidestep to the left, the faunus stumbling past her. 

There were laughs and jeers from the audience. People screaming for her opponent to ‘rip that cripple apart’. Yang tried to block out the noise, having enough trouble dealing with the neon lights and smoke that filled the club. 

“You little rat.” Her foe hissed, embarrassed by his missed shot. 

“C’mon man.” Yang chuckled. “It’s like you’re bear-ly trying.”  
Groans and sighs could be heard throughout the club. 

He charged forward again, keeping his arms closer to his body as he approached Yang. She grimaced. She was hoping he’d be stupid enough to keep up the ‘tank’ schtick the whole fight. 

He let loose a flurry of blows, aiming to strike Yang in the head. Her feet moved quickly, drawing her out of his massive range in tandem with every strike. A particularly large throw left his rib cage exposed. The blond grinned as she took advantage of the opening, landing two quick jabs in the man’s side. He groaned and retreated from his opponent, shocked by the force of her punches. She smirked as he growled. 

_That’s right buddy, get angry._ She thought to herself. He’d be easier to take down if he was unfocused. 

The bear faunus roared as charged once more, fully bearing his claws. He swiped at her in a rapid mess of blows, forcing Yang further and further back to the corner of the arena. She misjudged the reach of his claws, getting caught with a glancing blow in the stomach. Pain surged through her nerves as she saw her blood on the man’s claws, still raised to strike her once more. 

She pushed his arm away with the back of hers, bringing her knee up to hammer him in the chest once again. He reeled from the attack, anger and fury blinding him as he tackled the girl in a surprise move. Yang fell to the ground, the blood leaking out from her wound painting a trail of blood on the hard floor. 

_Shit._ She mentally berated herself. She’d gotten too cocky. Yang tried to scramble to her feet, the bear kicking her while she was down. She coughed, eyes slowly turning red as he sauntered over to her. Her blood was starting to boil. Adrenaline rushed through her veins like a drug and the pain felt weirdly good. 

Yang could feel her vision getting narrower, focused only on her opponent. 

“That’s more like it bitch!” He laughed, the audience around chanting for him to finish her off. 

“C’mon Yang!” Sun called out from behind. “You got this!” 

She slowly came to her feet and popped her neck, eyes fully burning a brilliant shade of red.   
“Get out of my way.” She whispered, before her feet flung her at her enemy. He was caught off guard, Yang punching him squarely ribs like before. A sickening crunching sound rang out as his bones shattered under the force of her blow. 

She kept up her assault, roundhouse kicking him in the solar plexus and dropping him to the floor. He tried to get back up before Yang forced him down with her fist again, landing blow after blow right into his face. The girl smiled as his blood splattered around the arena, as his nose broke, as his teeth got knocked loose and bone shattered. 

Over and over again she struck him, even as he started to beg for her to stop. The audience stopped cheering for him, some falling silent and some calling for her tear him to pieces. She felt strong again, like she was invincible. 

“Stop! You’ll kill him!”

Her fist hung in midair, knuckles aching. She recognized that voice calling out among the throng of others. Quickly dismounting her fallen foe, Yang gazed upon the mess she had created. He was breathing heavily, still alive, but more than a little messed up in the face. 

If she’d had her prosthetic on there wouldn’t be a face left. 

“Looks like blondy here is the winner!” The club owner cried out, the crowd cheering at the bloodbath. 

“Didn’t think you had it in you.” The tiger faunus jeered, walking over to Manus’s unconscious form on the arena floor. “I thought he was gonna kill you.” 

Yang tried to wipe her face of sweat, stopping at the last second as she realized how much blood was on her fist. 

“Whatever.” Yang hopped out of the arena, grabbing her prosthetic out of a stunned Sun’s hands. 

\-----

It hadn’t been too hard to sneak into the club. Blake and Ruby both went in through an unguarded side entrance and dispersed into the crowd. Most of the patrons were too rowdy or drunk to pay them any mind anyways. She found a spot on the second floor, where the crowd was slightly less dense in order to get a good view of the arena. 

After a quick scan of the bottom floor she found Yang and Sun, conversing together about something, the blond missing her prosthetic for some reason. Maybe it wasn’t allowed in the fights? Blake rolled her eyes. There was no way a place as shady as this had any actual rules. 

Her eyes fell to a private room at the end of the floor in the corner. She cursed, wishing her faunus ears weren’t hidden. Without them, she couldn’t quite make out what was being said. Blake crept over to the door past a gaggle of drunk faunus and tried to nonchalantly stand next to it. 

The voices were fairly hushed. She tried to inch closer every few seconds, not wanting to seem conspicuous in a club full of scum. 

“... Watts is… next week it…” 

“Tell your forces to…”

Who the hell was Watts? What forces? For all she knew they were some losers playing a board game or something. That was, until she heard the unmistakable voice of Fennec Albain. 

“We’ll be ready… Brother Adam is eager.” 

Her blood turned to ice and she stumbled away from the door. Quickly, she shuffled away as far as she could, vision narrowing and hearing failing. She could feel the flames from beacon stinging her skin. 

“Alright shut up! It’s time to fight!” 

The club owner’s burly voice snapped her back to reality. Her deepest fears had been realized. Illia was right; Adam was planning something big in Mistral, something big in a week’s time.   
Blake’s legs felt weak and shaky, like they might collapse underneath her at any moment. She tried to take deep breaths to steady herself; there wasn’t time for cowardice now. She’d promised. 

No more running. 

Her eyes trailed Yang as she got into the arena, her opponent a big, intimidating looking bear faunus. 

_Please Yang._ She thought to herself, gripping the railing that lined the second floor. _Be safe._  
Blake longed to be down there with her, fighting alongside her partner. The two had fought in sync so many times at Beacon, like a person and their shadow. 

The fight began and it seemed like Yang easily had the upper hand against her larger opponent. His moves seemed big and unwieldy. Yang even had time to crack a pun. 

_Bear-ly?_ Blake had to bite her tongue to stifle her snicker. She’d missed those puns dearly, buy it was hardly the time or place for jokes. 

Her heart nearly jumped out of her throat when she saw Yang’s opponent land a blow on her torso, a neat spray of blood splattering onto the floor. She held her hand over her mouth, trying to keep herself from shouting. It wasn’t a deep wound, she told herself. Yang was perfectly fine. 

Or she thought she was. The blond unleashed a vicious assault against the faunus, tackling him to the ground and smashing his face, over and over again. The crowd grew rowdier at the sight, chanting, calling out for blood. Her eyes widened as she watched Yang attack him, not showing any signs of stopping. The man’s face was quickly turning into a pool of blood and Blake couldn’t stop herself from screaming anymore. 

“Stop! You’ll kill him!” She shouted, tears pooling at the base of her eyes. That wasn’t Yang. Yang would never do such a thing. 

She gripped the railing tightly, Adam’s words from that night echoing in her mind. Had she really lost her? Blake kept crying as Yang left the arena, wordlessly, shuffling off into the shadows in the club.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I've been really really busy with life and shit so I didn't get back to every comment and chapters will probably come out slower for a while. But still, thank you for reading!


	21. Chapter 21

_An arms dealer. That’s who Ozpin wanted her to kill. Raven hid in the shadows of the factory: a fish packing facility on the outside. On the inside, Ozpin’s intel revealed a black market where deadly weapons were sold to ‘discerning’ customers._

_Armed guards stood outside the main entrance, vetting a shady group of individuals as they entered the factory. Raven scaled the building’s outside, staying in the penumbra cast by the moon. She hopped in through a broken window, red eyes quickly scanning the terrain, searching for her target._

_She saw the woman on the ground floor of the building, a large stack of black packaging behind her filled to the brim with weapons. A grumpy looking man with a stupid looking handlebar moustache was speaking with her._

_“This is it? This is all the weapons you have for us?” He grumbled, shuffling back and forth across the warehouse floor._

_“How much more can she possibly want?” The arms dealer shot back. “I’ve been smuggling in as much as I can.”_

_“Yes, well, it’s not enough.” He said snarkily. “Are you certain this is all you can get? As you know, money is of no concern…”_

_Raven wondered what exactly it was these two were planning that had Ozpin’s pants in such a rustle; enough so that he wanted that woman dead. It wasn’t entirely her concern though. She wanted him to leave her brother and the rest of her team out of his mysterious plans._

_Her weapon clicked and she formed her bow, taking aim directly at the woman’s head. The dust arrow flew, plunging into the woman’s skull and bringing her body crashing to the floor._

_“Dammit, guards!” The moustached man cursed, the men from the front bursting through the door and taking aim at the rafters. Raven moved quickly, hopping from side to side as she dodged the flurry of bullets._

_“Get her!” The man shouted, storming out of the building._

_Should I kill him too? The huntress considered it. Better safe than sorry. She didn’t always see eye to eye with Ozpin, but any shady underground arms dealing was likely a threat to vale. Raven hopped down from the rafters, switching to her katana as she knocked out one of the guards with the back of her blade._

_The other guard fared just as well, getting swatted down to the ground like a fly by Raven._

_“Useless idiots…” Watts muttered under his breath, rushing quickly to the car his driver was waiting in. He’d been warned there might be resistance during the weapons trade. They’d have to find a new supplier now._

_Or something more dangerous than simple weapons._

_He saw the red eyed woman come out of the building, looking smug and satisfied with her dirty work._

_“Well I must confess Ms. Huntress that it’s time for me to leave.” Watts performed a mock bow as the woman switched out her weapon for a glowing green bow once more._

_Raven didn’t respond to the man, drawing back her arrow, feeling the dust string tighten and pull against her. As she let the arrow loose, she was tackled to the ground in a flash of white light._

_Watts shrugged and continued running, getting away from the huntress and slipping into his escape car._

_Raven wrestled with the person who tackled her, throwing the smaller figure to the ground. She drew her sword and rested it against the figure’s neck. It was her team’s mysterious leader._

_“Summer?!” Raven quickly drew her sword back._

_“Raven,” Summer began, gingerly rubbing her neck. “What’s going on?”_

_Her silver eyes reflected concern, anger… disappointment.  
“I saw you kill that woman in there.” _

_“You’re not supposed to be here Summer.” Raven grit her teeth. Their intrepid leader must have followed her after she left. She’d been stupid to think Summer wouldn’t notice anything was amiss._

_“Raven, please.” Summer begged. “We’re friends. Why are you doing this?”_

_She stood up and grasped Raven’s hand. “I know you’re not a killer.”_

_“You don't know that.” Raven responded, eyes locked on the earth.  
_  
\-----

Yang slammed back a bottle of water as the club owner approached her. Sun was fighting next in the arena, against someone Yang wasn't too worried about. 

“You did great in there.” The tiger Faunus smirked. “And you turned out every bit as vicious as from that tournament. I got a proposition for you.”

Yang raised an eyebrow. This could be the lead they'd be hoping for. The lead she'd nearly killed a guy to get. 

“I'm listening.” She responded, rubbing the fingers on her metal a together. 

“A buddy of mine is looking for some hired muscle for a big job. Doesn't care if you're human or not, just needs you to break things. Interested?”

“I never turn down an offer to bust heads.” Yang grinned. She was getting closer and closer to a lead. 

“Good.” The Faunus responded. You've got a few more rounds before your next fight. Win that one too and I'll set you up with his contact.”

Yang shrugged. “I won't disappoint.”

“I hope not blondy.”

Ruby was nearby, shuffling through the crowd to try and get to her sister. She'd seen what happened in that last fight and had been horrified. Her sister wasn't the type of person to hurt someone after they were already down. 

She pressed her hand over her heart; Yang must have been hurting far more than she was letting on to have snapped like that. 

“Ruby.” The young huntress nearly screamed when Blake gently tapped her shoulder, the Faunus covering her mouth quickly with her hand. 

“Stay quiet Ruby.” Blake whispered, making sure the two of them hadn't drawn any attention. “I found a lead. I think…”

The raven haired girl glanced over at Yang, who was watching Sun’s fight intently. Her eyes had switched back to lilac, that terrifying red glow having left the blond’s eyes. 

“I think we should all get out of here.” Ruby nodded, looking unsettled by the whole situation. 

The two split up, each making their own separate way out of the club. Ruby would stay behind and fetch Sun and Yang while Blake went ahead and met up with the others to discuss her findings. 

Cheers erupted from the audience as Sun finally won his fight, blowing a raspberry at his fallen foe. Yang cheered him on as well as he hopped out of the arena looking smug. 

“Psst,” Ruby whispered, giving Yang a small tap on the shoulder. 

“Aren't you supposed to be laying low?” Yang quickly recognized her sister’s voice, playfully punching the girl in the shoulder. 

“Nothing’s wrong right?”

“I think we should leave.” Ruby awkwardly glanced down at Yang’s fist. “Blake’s found some stuff. I don't think we should stay any longer than we have too.” 

“I’ve got a lead too.” Yang began with a smile. “I just gotta beat one more person, that's it. Then the club owner’s gonna give me some info.”

Sun joined in, placing a hand on Yang’s shoulder. “We should find out what it is.”  
The air was noticeably awkward between the three. Yang was trying hard to ignore it. 

“Where’s Blake?” She asked, looking for the missing member of their temporary quartet. 

“She went back.” Ruby fidgeted with her fingers. 

“You didn’t go with her?” The elder sister responded, some panic leaking into her voice. “What if she-” 

Sun cut her off. “Hey, it’s ok Yang. Blake… Blake won’t run away again.”

Ruby nodded in affirmation as an awkward silence filled the space between the three.   
“A-anyways, I’ll head back into the crowd then. Be careful sis.”

\-----

“Ready kid?” 

“Yep.” 

“Alright, get in the ring then.”

The rest of the fights proceeded without event and Yang started getting prepared to fight her next opponent. It was just another fight, she told herself. It wouldn’t take long and then she could leave, get some rest, and forget the whole evening had ever happened. 

She parted with Sun and jumped into the arena, a somewhat scrawny looking bird faunus entering as well. The girl had feathers peeking out through her hair and behind her ears, the only obvious indication of her faunus heritage. 

“I’m gonna get payback for Manus.” The girl hissed, cracking her knuckles as she stared down Yang. 

“You’re welcome to try.” Yang shrugged, rolling her shoulders and settling into her kick boxing stance. 

Just one more fight. That was it. 

The fight commenced and it quickly became obvious that the girl was a more conscious, careful fighter than her first opponent had been. She circled around Yang, looking for an opening like and eagle hunting a mouse. 

Yang held her ground, feet light on the arena floor, prepared to back step at the first sign of an attack. The girl finally lashed out, striking with her fists in a quick flurry to test the waters. Yang stepped backwards, returning the strikes with a quick jab and a right hook, which the girl unfortunately diverted with some well timed blocks. 

A brute force approach wouldn’t work, nor did Yang want to use brute force again. Not after the last fight. 

Wait till you find their weakness. Then you strike with all your might. 

Yang frowned, trying to push her mother’s words out of her head despite the relevance to her current situation. The two girls circled around each other, each staying clear of the other’s reach. 

“We gonna do this all day?” Yang taunted, raising her eyebrows. “I bet all those feathers would go great in a pillow.” 

“Shut up.” The bird faunus responded, feathers ruffling a bit. 

“Then why don’t you actually fight tweety bird?” Yang chuckled, feeling a little guilty about her taunts. She needed the other girl to drop her guard though and anger made for a good panacea to wisdom. 

The ruse worked, and the girl quickly approached Yang, lashing out with a series of kicks that a martial artist would envy. Yang moved her arms to block the blows, thankful that she had her prosthetic back as the blows clanged against the hard metal. The girl flipped backwards and crouched down, trying to knock Yang’s legs out from underneath her with a sweeping kick. The blond grinned, hopping over the blow and landing a solid blow against the girl’s face with her boot. 

The faunus let out a grunt before being struck by a blow from Yang’s right fist to the stomach. She reeled and gagged, clutching her stomach tightly and trying not to vomit. 

“I-I give!” The girl begged, falling over to her knees as she tried to catch her breath. Yang wouldn’t have been surprised if she had a few broken ribs on top of everything else. “I give!” 

The crowd became rowdy again, with several calls being made for Yang to smash her face in as well. The blond ignored them, making her way out of the arena. It was more than enough of a victory for her. 

“What, you’re gonna stop there?” The club owner laughed, gesturing to the audience around them. “C’mon, rough her up a bit more. The rowdier they are the better for me.”

Yang grit her teeth. She wasn’t about to be baited. “No way. I won like you said.” 

“Do it or I’m not telling you shit.” The faunus shot back with a growl.

Yang shrugged. She wanted to turn the club owner’s face into a paste. “I guess the deal’s off then. Sun, let’s get out of here.” 

“You’re gonna regret this kid.” 

“I already do.” 

Yang grabbed Sun and stormed out of the club, blood boiling and heart pounding. Ruby quickly shuffled through the crowd, joining up with the three looking concerned and afraid. 

“Yang, are you ok?” Ruby asked, welcoming the fresh, cold night air as a relief from the alcohol scented club.

“Yeah, I’m ok.” Yang smiled, taking a deep breath to try and calm her nerves. 

“Hey, respect Yang.” Sun said. “You didn’t take her baiting. And it’s alright, cause Blake already found some stuff and everything…”

“I know Sun I just…” Yang began, cutting herself off as she spied her partner curled up against a wall not far from them. “... I’m just kind of tired.” 

She turned to Ruby and Sun, trying to put on a strong face.   
“Can you two go on ahead? I want to talk to Blake.”

Ruby hugged her sister tightly. “It’s ok sis. We’ll see you back at the hotel.”

She smiled, in the stunningly warm and sweet way only Ruby could. “I love you.”

“Love you too Rubes.” Yang squeezed her sister back. 

\-----

Blake wasn’t far from the club, as she hadn’t gotten far before she was overcome with an overwhelming urge to vomit. She struggled to get the scene out of her mind. Of Yang acting so cruelly, so unconsciously violent. The girl shivered, though not from the cold. 

“Blake?” 

She jumped slightly as she heard Yang’s voice, yellow eyes darting to her partner’s figure. Yang looked incredibly tired, a frown pasted across her features. 

“Where’s everyone else?” Blake asked, rubbing her arms to generate some warmth. 

“They went on ahead. I wanted… I wanted to see how you were doing.” Yang responded, slumping down next to Blake. The faunus flinched at the proximity, shuffling away slightly. Yang looked devastated. 

“Blake, I’m so sorry.” The blond choked. “I don’t know what happened, I just…”

“Lost control?” Blake finished. She’d heard the same excuse many times before. She hated those words.

“... yeah.” Yang turned her head away from Blake, resting her forehead on her forearms. She didn’t have nearly enough courage to look at the faunus. Blake fought the urge to curl up next to Yang. The heat emanating off the blond was far too tempting in the frigid night air. 

“I got so angry.” She could hear the blond starting to sob, despite not being able to see her face. “I’m scared. I’m really, really scared.”

She pulled her head up, eyes red not from anger but tears. “I told you something’s wrong with me.”

“Yang.” Blake could feel herself tearing up as well. Never had Adam shown such honesty and regret. Just excuses and anger. 

_She’s not him._ The faunus reminded herself. She could never, ever, be like him. 

“It’s ok.” She grabbed Yang’s left hand tightly, locking their fingers together. 

“It’s not though.” Yang lifted her head, brushing away tears from her face. “I can’t afford to lose anyone again. Especially not if I’m the one who pushes you away.”

Yang clenched her fist. “I can’t turn into my mom. I-I’m not her.”

“I can’t imagine the kind of pain you’ve been in.” Blake whispered. Her abandonment and the Fall of Beacon had shattered her partner. Even so, Yang was still here, still trying to fight, trying to protect her friends and family. 

“... I can’t believe how strong you are Yang.”

Yang laughed, clearly thinking Blake’s comment was a sugar coated lie. 

“I meant it.” The faunus added more sternly, rising up from the ground. “I won’t… I won’t watch you hurt yourself like this.” 

Yang looked up at Blake, surprised by her sudden outburst and determination. THe raven haired girl crouched back down and pressed their foreheads together. 

“I won’t let you.” She pulled her partner into a hug.

“I don’t deserve it.” Yang hugged her back tightly, feeling vulnerable and very much like a stupid kid again.

“I think you deserve everything.” She lifted the blond’s chin and brought their lips together, the two embracing the physical contact and forgetting the outside world around them for just a moment.


	22. Chapter 22

“And the first subjects will be ready for deployment first thing next week?” 

“Yes Dr. Watts. Are you… certain we should be doing this though? The collateral damage will be immense…” 

Watts twisted his mustache and glared at his rather insubordinate employee. If he kept running his mouth off he’d be Watt’s next experiment. He had little patience for back talking and dissenters. 

Strolling through the underground lab with a smile on his face, he came across Adam Taurus, a perpetually grim looking and annoying faunus. 

“Are things ready on your end Mr. Taurus?” Watts asked, knowing full well how much the man hated being called ‘Mr.’. 

“Of course.” The redhead shrugged, staring at the vats with disgust. It didn't surprise Watts that he didn’t care for his work. Not everyone could be a visionary like him. 

“Now, there is one matter of concern.” Watts began, stroking his mustache. “I’ve been told the Branwens are here. Both of them. I don’t know if you’re familiar with them.”

Adam looked at him strangely. 

“Of course you’re not. They’re an issue. And they’re both stronger than you.”

Adam grunted, fingers rapping against the sheath of his sword.   
“Whoever they are, two people aren’t enough to stop an army. And when the faunus rise up in tandem no one will be able to stop it.”

Watts chuckled. What a naive boy.   
“Oh, one more thing.” 

He grinned wickedly, eager to see Adam’s reaction. “That girl of yours. She’s been spotted, along with a young human with a prosthetic and their plucky little friends.” 

Adam’s knuckles turned bright white against his sword. 

“Do what you want, but Salem wants the one with the silver eyes.” Watts finished, turning sharply on his dress shoes as he returned to his work. 

\-----

Breakfast was awkward. JNR and RWBY sat around a table, receiving dodgy answers about the night before and sharing awkward glances at Oscar, who had joined them on Qrow’s insistence. 

“So uh, Oscar,” Ruby began, trying her best to make things less awkward. Her uncle had been incredibly cagey about the boy, and everything going on in general. Today was the day he was finally supposed to meet the headmaster of Haven, so he pawned the boy off on his nieces and their friends. 

“You said you worked on a farm? That sounds super fun! I love all the cute animals.” The girl beamed. Oscar shrugged in response. 

“It was fine.” He said, shuffling food around his plate awkwardly. 

“... You miss it huh?” Yang asked, playing with her food just as intensely. “It’s tough, being away from home.”

She shared a sad smile with the others. 

“Y-yeah.” Oscar mumbled, seemingly overwhelmed by all the others present. Occasionally, he would turn to the side and mumble something to himself. Everyone else ignored it, not having the slightest clue what to say. 

“We should talk about our plans.” Weiss said, cutting off the conversation. Yang rolled her eyes. The white haired girl was as task driven as always. 

“We know there will be an attack next week.” Blake began, face blanketed in worry. “The White Fang are going to be involved.”

“The owner of that club knows something. I think maybe we should pay her another visit.” Yang added, smashing her fists together. “Y’know, for a talk.”

Ruby looked at her sister sheepishly. Weiss hadn’t been told about Yang’s ‘incident’, but the memory was quite fresh in Blake and Ruby’s minds. 

“My parents have been trying to meet with the leader of the Fang.” Blake changed the topic quickly. “They haven’t been able to get in yet though. I’m worried that might be a dead end.”

Yang growled. “Even more reason to get some info out of her. If we wanna stop this we can’t… we can’t wait around.” 

Nora whooped in agreement, the only other person at the table seemingly excited at the prospect of the brawl. 

“Yang’s right! Enough standing around.” She pumped her arms proudly. “After everything we’ve been through. We can definitely do this!” 

Nora’s enthusiasm was contagious, causing everyone to smile broadly. Yang swung her head around as she thought she saw something tap on the window. Blake gently grabbed her shoulder, concerned at the blond’s sudden movement. Oscar muttered something to himself darkly. 

“A-anyways.” Ruby chirped. “Jaune, Ren, Nora, can we count on you to capture the club owner? We’ll take backup this time.”

Yang was slightly miffed, but she understood Ruby’s reasoning. It had been a while since JNR had had any real action anyways, as far as Yang knew. Her little sister had been somewhat cagey on what happened while they were apart. 

They all headed out, bidding a quick goodbye to Oscar, with JNR taking the lead. Team RWBY would standby, ready to intervene if anything bad happened. Yang felt on edge; she knew what she had seen fly by the window earlier. 

A Raven. 

She clenched her fists and let out a long breath, the rest of her teammates noting her heightened nerves and increased stress. 

“You ok sis?” Ruby asked, walking alongside her sibling. 

“Yeah I’m ok.” Yang shrugged, forcing her fingers to uncurl. “Just seeing things.”   
It couldn’t have possibly been one of her mother’s birds. Raven was gone again. For good this time. 

Weiss huffed in annoyance suddenly.   
“It’s been several days now. Aren’t any of you going to comment on my new outfit?” 

Ruby and Yang snickered while Blake let out a sigh of relief, eliciting the typical Schnee groan they had all come to love and appreciate. 

“H-hey! I’ll have you know this dress was made by one of the finest tailors in Atlas!” 

“You look great Weiss.” Ruby said through her laughter, Yang holding her hand over her mouth in an attempt to stifle her chuckles. 

“Well it’s about time someone said something!” Weiss responded, trying hard to stifle her own giggles. It had been a long time, too long in fact, since they all shared such a good laugh together. 

Just like before. Yang smiled broadly. Warmth slowly crept its way back into her heart. 

A black feather fluttered down in the center of the four, Yang trailing it with her eyes as the warmth suddenly left as quickly as it came. 

“Hey do you guys mind if I uh, just step away for a second?” Yang asked crouching down and picking the feather up. “I’ll bring back food or something.”

“Ooh, get some of those dumpling stick things!” Ruby shouted, before being promptly educated by Weiss on what the delicious foodstuff actually was. 

“Yang,” Blake began, turning the blond to face her. “I’m going with you ok?” 

Ruby and Weiss exchanged worried looks. The dynamic between the Blake and Yang was still worrying for the two. 

“Are you sure that’s…” Weiss began, concern evident on her face. 

Yang simply smiled in response. There was no point in fighting it. If Blake wanted to come, she could come. After all, the blond was still convinced she was seeing things. 

“It’s fine. We’ll be back soon.” She grabbed Blake’s hand and started off, amused by the other girl’s surprised response. 

“Y-Yang, where exactly are we going?” Blake stammered, caught off guard.

“Not totally sure.” Yang answered. Her eyes scanned the ground, looking for more black feathers. She followed the bird’s trail, hearing the faint cry of a raven in the distance. Her heartbeat grew faster and faster the closer the sound came, sweat starting to drip down her forehead. 

Feathers led the two down one of the many alleyways littering the city, Blake growing more and more concerned by Yang’s intense focus. 

“Yang really, what’s-” The black haired girl nearly collided with her partner as she stopped suddenly. 

“Raven?” 

The word left Yang’s mouth in a panic and Blake quickly learned why. Standing before them with the black bird on her mom was a tall, dark woman, with long, beautiful black curls and striking red eyes. She looked just like Yang. 

“Is that…” Blake muttered, unable to take her eyes off the near carbon copy of her partner standing before them. 

“You need to leave.” Raven whispered, red eyes betraying a surprising amount of sadness. “Both of you.” 

She grasped her temples tightly, as though she were in pain. “... all of you.”

“You’re the one that should leave!” Yang shouted suddenly, heat radiating off of her as her eyes flashed red. 

“You don’t understand!” The woman screamed back, fists tightly clenched. “Yang-”

“Don’t say my name!” Yang grabbed her head. 

“You’re going to die!” 

The woman’s words cut through the anger and rendered the two girls silent. Red eyes landed right on Blake, sending a shiver down her spine. 

“And you will too.”

\-----  
 _  
It was the usual blur of a vision that Raven had grown so accustomed to. Unclear lines, colors over and under saturated leaving the scene unclear and vague. She felt flames heat her skin and rain pour down onto her. The sounds of battle, clashing metal, gunfire, rang out around her._

_Raven shut her eyes and opened them once again, watching a battle unfolding before her. Yang and her partner clashed against a myriad of twisted Grimm abominations, no doubt creations from the ever cruel and evil Dr. Watts. The two fought well together, complimenting each other’s fighting styles and dealing with the abominations as best they could._

_“We can do this Blake!” Yang shouted, metallic arm shining brightly through the darkness.  
“The others will be back soon!” _

_The faunus smiled, pressing her back against her partner’s as the two prepared to face down another slew of monsters._

_“Ah yes, half of team RWBY.” Raven recognized Watt’s condescending, pretentious voice._

_“Only need to half to take you down.” Yang taunted. The two girl’s braced themselves against their new foe. Watts paced around in the darkness, wriggling his nose at the two girls._

_“I find it absolutely ridiculous that such weak little girls have caused us all so much trouble.”  
He sighed, gesturing to behind the two huntresses. A red haired faunus stalked towards them, bearing the mask of a high ranking white fang member. _

_“Mr. Taurus in particular has a vendetta to pick against you two.”_

_The scene flashed before her, the sight being lost to shadows. Voices still cried out in the darkness._

_“Yang, run!” A cry of pain, her daughter wailing far louder than the rain could be._

_“Goodbye, Blake.” Screaming. Agony._

_“Don’t finish this one off quite yet Adam.” Evil, the worst of intentions and an affront to the world._

_“I’ve always wanted to experiment on a Branwen.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the lack of updates! I pumped this chapter out in a bit of a hurry (real life has a been a torrent of pain and misery lately) so I apologize for any typos and such! Thanks for reading, seriously it means a lot!


	23. Chapter 23

“You had a premonition?” Yang asked, the top of her mouth suddenly feeling very dry. Blake looked at her concerned and confused, the whole situation far too overwhelming. Raven spoke with so much certainty in her voice, like a teacher scolding a problematic student. The air around the three felt thick and heavy, laced with unspoken words and knowing glances. Blake felt like a trespasser.

“Yes.” The woman responded, shoulders rigid and stark. Her red eyes bored directly into Blake sizing the faunus up and making Blake feel intensely uncomfortable. 

“I don’t know exactly what you did to make such an enemy, but he’s going to kill you if we don’t change the course.”

Blake swallowed. As confused as she was, she knew very well who ‘he’ was. How Yang’s ‘mother’ knew was beyond her. She couldn’t get a good read on her at all. 

“Whatever I have to do then.” Yang grabbed Blake’s hand tightly. The faunus reciprocated, squeezing back despite her inability to form an actual response. Raven’s eyes lingered on the two girl’s hands for a moment before she continued. The two of them were still young; still innocent despite the trials that had befallen them. 

“You’re in danger as well.” Raven began, pacing towards the two. Both girls braced themselves as though for an attack, relaxing only slightly as Raven made her way past them. 

Yang’s teeth rubbed against each other like rusted gears in a machine.   
“From them or from you?”

Raven didn’t answer her question. “First we find Qrow.” 

They paced after her wordlessly, Yang and Blake exchanging worried glances. Saying the tension was palpable was an understatement. It was thick enough that it felt like walking into a brick wall. 

Eventually they happened back upon Ruby and Weiss, who, appropriately, acted in shock, surprise, and confusion. 

“W-who, Yang? What?” Ruby stammered, pulling out Crescent Rose on instinct. Weiss’s hand rested on Myrtensater’s hilt, but she didn’t quite pull the weapon out. Ruby’s finger gestured back and forth from Raven to Yang, obviously flabbergasted by the similarity.

“W-who is that? She looks, she looks just like-”

“Like you.” Weiss finished, eyes darting o Yang and Blake, looking for some sort of visible answer from the two. 

“Raven Branwen.” Yang said matter of factly. “My birth mother.” 

Ruby’s eyes went wide and her weapon clattered to the ground as her hands went numb from shock. 

“What? Yang I don't understand…”

“There’s not time to explain.” Raven sighed, clearly irritated by the time sink. “We need to discuss things with Qrow.” 

“Is there ever time for anything with you?” Yang scoffed. Her friends remained silent, words failing and sentences turning into air before they could be spoken. Yang pulled up near Ruby as Raven paced off, Blake and Weiss trailing the mysterious woman with their eyes.

“I’m sorry Ruby. I promise I’ll explain this soon.” Yang brought her sister into a hug, trying to dispel some of the fear and confusion. “... I’m so, so sorry.”

“I-if you say so.” Her little sister breathed somewhat easier, though tension was still visible on her figure. 

The four walked closely together, Raven stalking ahead of them, silhouette imposed against the backdrop of Menagerie.

“... So, she’s your real mom.” Ruby began in a hushed whisper, walking closely to Yang. Weiss and Blake gave the two the space they needed. 

“No. Summer’s still my real mom Ruby.” Yang responded, fist clenching and unclenching as they walked. She forced her hand open, grasping Ruby’s gently. “She always will be. And you will always be my sweet little sis.”

Ruby smiled at her, nerves calmed by her sister assurances.  
“Always.” Her sister repeated, silver eyes shining bright with love. “But if she’s Uncle Qrow’s sister does that make her my aunt?”

Yang snickered, ruffling her sister’s hair. “A very scary, angry, brooding aunt, yes.”

“She’s strong, I can tell that.” Ruby added, showing a bit of that age she’d gained after Beacon Fell. It made Yang frown. She hadn’t ever wanted that innocence to die. “... Maybe even stronger than Uncle Qrow.”

“She’s strong for sure.” Yang responded after a brief pause.”I’m not totally sure she’s on our side though.”

Ruby frowned. “If she wasn’t, wouldn’t she have already done something by now?”

“She’s done enough.”

\-----  
 _  
“Wow Raven, you look… amazing.”_

_Tai had always been quick to compliment her, but Raven knew he was being genuine tonight. It was the couple’s one year anniversary (something Tai had insisted they celebrate despite Raven’s initial protests), and she had gone all out on her appearance. While she hated wearing dresses, she knew she looked damn good in them and had picked out a red and black on that brought out her assets. Her long (really long) black hair fell out around her shoulders in a mess of curls and waves. He always told her he loved her hair._

_Taiyang himself was looking quite nice as well. At some point he’d gotten himself a new suit, trousers and blazer fitting far better than his previous one, complete with a silk tie that matched his signature colors._

_“You still haven’t told me where we’re going.” Raven smirked, putting her weight on one leg. Qrow always made fun of her for it; she never had acted ‘sexy’ for anyone other than Taiyang. Those conversations usually ended up with her smacking him across the head. Her brother was an idiot._

_“Well you know how romantic surprises are.” Taiyang said with a wink, taking his paramore by the arm. “And I, am a master of romance.”_

_“Is that why you almost fell out of a window trying to give me flowers during class?”_

_“Exactly. See you get it!”_

_Raven laughed. It had taken her so long to open up to Taiyang and Summer, but she didn’t regret it. She was thankful she’d never had to watch either of them die either. Three times she had foreseen Qrow’s death and three times she had managed to prevent it. His bad luck semblance didn’t make things easy, but she’d always keep an eye on him._

_They walked through downtown Vale, arm in arm in a way that was almost sickenly cute. The two reminisced about the past year and the crazy missions and hijinks their team had been on.  
No one could say that team STRQ wasn’t the most… eccentric team at Beacon. Stories of their misadventures would be passed down for years, according to Summer. _

_The two finally arrived at Taiyang’s favorite little dive bar on the shore. Team STRQ had spent plenty of evenings there, celebrating successful missions and good test scores. It was also the place he’d taken her on their first date, which and awkward, bumbling, but ultimately fun mess._

_“Don’t you think we’re a bit over dressed?” Raven playfully elbowed Tai in the ribs. They walked into the bar and greeted the owner, a gruff looking old man who secretly was one of the sweetest people you’d ever meet._

_“Are you kidding? This place is classy.” Tai winked at her and ordered their drinks. They always got the same thing; Raven got red wine and Tai got top shelf tequila with a little umbrella in it. One of the blond’s strange little quirks._

_“Besides,” Tai began, voice smooth and full of love. “This is where I got to finally go on a date with my favorite person. And we somehow made it through that despite uh...”_

_“You dumping your food on me?”_

_“Well you looked hungry.”_

_Raven didn’t blush much. It was hard to embarrass someone who could literally rip your face off (Raven was well known to have the most brute strength of her teammates), but Taiyang seemed to have found the secret formula. Summer had finally wormed her way into Raven’s heart as well, becoming a far dearer friend than she ever expected._

_“Raven, I know I’m stupid a lot and you’ve saved my ass more times than I can count.” Tai began, giving the barkeep his card for their tab. “But you know I uh…”_

_“Spit it out Tai.” Raven sipped from her drink._

_“Well uh, I love you.”_

_Raven spat her drink._

_Her face turned bright red, easily matching the color of her eyes. Taiyang couldn’t help but snort. It wasn’t often anyone got to see his girlfriend so flustered. She was terrifying by all accounts; the way she walked was intimidating, she generally glared down anyone she wasn’t familiar with, and people were disturbed by her stunning red eyes. Tai thought they looked like beautiful rubies and he loved how they gleamed during battle._

_Raven thrived in combat. She struck down Grimm with a smile on her face, using her blade like an artist, cutting through massive hordes without breaking a sweat. It was crazy to watch. Their leader Summer was a master strategist and the two girls were absolutely deadly in combination._

_“T-that’s,” Raven stammered, trying not to look like a blithering idiot. “Tai you’re kidding right.”_

_He smiled at her and flicked the tiny umbrella in his glass. “Nope. I mean it.”_

_She looked down at her hands, struggling to maintain eye contact. This was… unexpected. How was she supposed to react? Taiyang was amazing. He was like a bright beam of sunlight in human form, always full of joy. Of course, he had a quick wit and his words were often dosed in a veil of sarcasm, but it was a dry form of humor that Raven enjoyed._

_He was far more than a trickster however. Tai was cunning in combat and used his speed to his advantage, striking quickly with his martial arts. Raven had to come to enjoy watching him, though she was loathe to admit it. Her teammate was kind, watching after the others at school and in combat._

_“I um,” Raven mumbled the next part, boring holes into the table with her eyes. “... love you too.”_  
\-----

“Qrow.”

“Raven.”

Blake hadn’t thought it could be possible for a situation to be more tense than it had been earlier, but she had no idea the animosity between the two so called siblings. JNR and RWBY awkwardly waited in the lobby as the two Branwens stared each other down. Well, Qrow at least was staring Raven down. The mysterious woman glared at Oscar with a disturbing intensity, as though she were about to strangle the boy right then and there. 

“Remember me, Oz?” She finally spoke, watching as Oscar murmured over his shoulder and shifted uncomfortably in place. 

“Leave him alone Raven.” Qrow grumbled, taking a much needed sip out of his flask. “He’s new to this. He sure as hell doesn’t have any answers you’d be interested in.”

Her eyes narrowed, red slits still boring into the young boy. She knew what he was. 

Blake shuffled close to Yang, wanting to be close to the blond’s warmth, considering the rest of the room felt like it was the dead of winter. Her fingers brushed against Yang’s hand, subtly enough that the other’s didn’t notice. 

“Are you ok?” Blake mumbled, trying to discern her partner’s emotions. 

“I don’t know. Probably not.” Yang responded, grabbing Blake’s hand with a feather-like touch.   
“This is weird right?”

Weird was an understatement.   
“I’m here for you.” Blake felt her face flush. It was still embarrassing to be so… close, to Yang, especially when things still remained rather awkward. 

“Thank you.” Their hands stayed together, despite the eyes Blake could feel resting on them. 

“Those kids are in trouble Qrow.” Raven spoke in hushed tones, so that the students wouldn’t overhear her. 

“Choosing now to care sis?” Qrow shot back, though his face betrayed a certain degree of worry.

“ _Yang_ is in trouble.” 

Qrow nursed his whiskey, feeling both Oscar and Raven’s eyes boring into him. The confusion from the younger hunters and huntresses leaked throughout the room. 

“Do tell.” Qrow capped his flask.

“A few days from now Watts is making his move.” The red eyed woman paced, making occasional glances at Oscar. “Mistral’s fall will be just as disastrous as Vale’s, if not more so.”

“The headmaster’s compromised too.” Qrow added. “Though I suppose you already knew that.”

Raven simply shrugged in response as Qrow rolled his eyes. Of course Raven already knew. 

“He’s making monsters Qrow.” Her thoughts drifted to her tribe’s unfortunate members, floating in a vat, twisted and broken. Thoughts drifting to the sight of Yang being carted off by Watts’s monsters as her partner bled out on the ground.

“I know. But why the sudden change of heart Raven? Really?” Qrow furrowed his brow. 

Raven looked over her shoulder at Yang, locking eyes with her daughter. She was holding onto her partner’s hand tightly. 

“I guess I finally got tired of making mistakes brother.”

\-----  
 _  
She was more beautiful than she could have possibly imagined._

_Small, crying, a small little poof of blond hair rising from her head, struggling to open her eyes to the world for the first time. Weird and frail. Brittle and confused. But still incredibly beautiful._

_Taiyang had tears in his eyes as he held onto her little hand, tiny fingers trying to wrap around her father’s far too large hand. The warmth of their child stunned Raven. She burned, like her heart was powering a mini sun._

_“Yang.” Raven said, stroking her daughter’s head._

_“Yang?” Tai snorted, resting his forehead against Raven’s._

_“I think it’s a good name.” Raven flushed slightly. Her daughter’s cries slowly ceased as she finally managed to open her eyes, little lilac pools, gentle and full of life, staring at her mother’s burning red. Yang got a good fistful of Raven’s hair and pulled on it, as her cries gave way to giggles._

_“I think she likes you.”_

_Raven let out a rarely heard laugh as Yang continued to pull on her mother’s curls. The three of them stayed in the room together as Summer and Qrow waited eagerly outside, giving the new family as much time as they needed with their child._

_“She’s gonna be strong.” Taiyang began, turning Raven’s head gently. “Strong like her mom.”  
He smiled broadly as Yang stared at him, reaching fruitlessly for his hair as well. “I think she’s got your eyes.” _

_She laughed. She thought her eyes looked more like Tai’s. Full of happiness and joy. She wanted those eyes to remain bright and innocent forever and she would do anything to to ensure it._

_This was her daughter._

_Yang.  
_


End file.
